I

ICTORY IN CHRISTIf you can trust when everyone about you

Is doubting Him, proclaiming Him untrue;If you can hope in Christ, tho' all forsake you

And say 'tis not the thing for you to do;

If you can wait on God, nor wish to hurry, Or, being greatly used, keep humble still;

Or if you're tested, still refuse to worry, And so remain within His sovereign will;

If you can say 'tis well when sorrow greets you, And death has taken those you hold most dear;

If you can smile when adverse trials meet you, And be content e'en tho' your lot be drear;

If you can be reviled and never murmur, Or, being tempted, not give way to sin;

If you fight for right and stand the firmer, Or lose the battle when you ought to win

If you can really long for His appearing, And therefore set your heart on things above;

If you can speak for Christ in spite of sneering, Or to the most unlovely one show love;

If you can hear the call of God to labor, And answer Yes in yieldedness and trust,

And go to tell the story of the Saviour To souls in darkness o'er the desert dust;

If you can pray when Satan's darts are strongest, And take the road of faith instead of sight;

Or walk with God, e'en tho' His way be longest, And swerve not to the left nor to the right;

If you desire Himself alone to fill you, For Him alone you care to live and be,

Then 'tis not you, but CHRIST who dwelleth in you, And that, O child of God, is victory!

Selected

Official Journal of the Ministerial Association of Seventh-day Adventists

VOLUME XXXIV

Editor ROY ALLAN ANDERSON

Associate Editor ANDREW C. FEARING

Managing Editor HARRY W. LOWE

Assistant Editors E. EARL CLEVELAND WALTER SCHUBERT

Copy Editor J. INA WHITE

Consulting EditorsREUBEN R. FIGUHR, WALTER R. BEACH,

EDWARD HEPPENSTALL, LOUISE C.KLEUSER, W. B. OCHS, H. L. RUDY

Art Editor T. K. MARTIN

Circulation ManagerWALTER SCHUBERT

E. EARL CLEVELAND, Assistant

OverseasGEORGE BURNSIDE ERWIN BERNER J. R. SPANGLER H. J. WESTPHAL WAYNE E. OLSON ODD JORDAL ENOCH OLIVEIRA S. G. MAXWELL J. F. ASHLOCKG. CUPERTINO

ContributorsAustralia

Central EuropeFar East

Inter-AmericaMiddle East

Northern EuropeSouth America

Southern AfricaSouthern Asia

Southern Europe

Editorial Office: 6840 Eastern Avenue, NW. Washington, D.C.

Printed and published monthly for the Min isterial Association of Seventh-day Adventists by the Review and Herald Publishing Associa tion, Washington, D.C., U.S.A. $4.00 a year; 40c a copy. Add 25c for yearly subscrip tions to countries requiring extra postage. Second-class postage paid at Washington, D.C.

JUNE, 1961

JUNE, 1961 No. 6

IN THIS ISSUEEDITORIAL

The Team Spirit in God's Service ._ R. A. Anderson 4

ARTICLESSupply and Demand ._ .___ _._._-___ G. D. King 7 The Hour of God's Judgment Is Come .. E. Heppenstall 8 The Basis of Christian Belief __._.___ F. G. Clifford 14 Review of Basic Principles in Approaching

Non-Adventists _._._- __._._________.. A. Kurtz 19 Youth Bible Study Conference _____.._ D. A. Roth 24 When Will Isaiah 11:6-9 Be Fulfilled? __ A. V. Olson 26

REGULAR FEATURESResearch ._......._._____......_._........ O. H. Christensen 15Evangelism ___.____ _... ___..._____________________________._.. 21Pastor Shepherding the Flock ___.__ C. B. Haynes 28 Health Evangelism ___________.___________ __._.... M. Tabler 32Bible Instructor ..____............_............. L. C. Kleuser 34Shepherdess ....._____..__,.._____...__________________ L. C. Kleuser 37Some Books I Can Recommend ______________ B. F. Kinman 11Books for Your Library ________.........__.____._....... 40News ._ ...__. .... -....___..._..._.____....._________ 42Pulpit Pointers for Preachers _.............._________. ___ 48

POETRYPoem Victory in Christ ___._..____________ _.... 2

Our Cover

This is a peaceful millpond scene in the Chocorua Lake district of New Hampshire. At this season we long to leave the fretful cities and get out into the serenities of nature, where we can echo the poet's cry, "O God, whose smile is in the sky!" It is a calming of the fevered brain and a cleansing of the sin-seared soul to adjust oneself to the calm, unhur ried moods of nature and of God's other creatures.

"The little cares that fretted me,I lost them yesterday

Among the fields above the sea,Among the winds at play,

Among the lowing of the herds,The rustling of the trees,

Among the singing of the birds, The humming of the bees."

Author Unknown

Cover Picture: A. Bevaney

EDITORIAL

The Team Spirit in God's Service

F;] EW relationships are as im portant in God's cause as

teamwork. Before Pentecost the disciples were only a group; after Pentecost they were a team. Then they turned the world upside down. What built them into a team was

first their relationship to God and then to one another. It was the team spirit in the apostolic church that made that church invincible.

After the descent of the Holy Spirit, when the disciples went forth to proclaim a living Saviour, their one desire was the salvation of souls. They rejoiced in the sweetness of communion with saints. They were tender, thoughtful, self-denying, willing to make any sacrifice for the truth's sake. In their daily association with one another, they revealed the love that Christ had enjoined upon them. By unselfish words and deeds, they strove to kindle this love in other hearts. The Acts of the Apostles, p. 547.

Before Pentecost their influence had been felt in the community. Their ministry had been blessed of God, but not until they had been molded into a team did they rise to their full strength. Before Pentecost these men were jealous of their position. After Pentecost their personal standing mattered little. We read of Peter "standing up with the eleven" (Acts 2:14). Jealousy, resentment, and lack of confidence were gone. We see them now standing with him as he presents God's Word.

Team Spirit Essential

The spirit of the team is more important than the size of the team; and morale is more important than the budget. These

first evangelists had no budget, but they had a spirit that moved the world. We re joice in the liberality of our dear members around the world, which makes possible an enlarging budget each year, but the success of this Advent Movement is not tied to a budget, no matter what size it is. God did more with Gideon's three hun dred united, dedicated men than He could have done with thirty thousand.

Preachers can learn lessons from men of the world. Those who build baseball teams know there must be fielders, catchers, basemen, and pitchers. If everybody wanted to be pitcher there would not be a team. Then even after the selection they still have to be molded into a team; each needs to know the other's strength. And no man is worth his place unless he is playing for the team.

There will, of course, be a captain, some one who takes the responsibility of guiding the group and giving orders. But the cap tain must also be a part of the team, willing to take the counsel and suggestions of his men. That is what builds team spirit. A team is a fellowship, not a dictatorship. The same principle applies to the work of God; every worker must seek to build up his fellow workers. At that solemn moment when the founders of our nation were sign ing the Declaration of Independence, Ben jamin Franklin, with characteristic wisdom and humor, said, "Gentlemen, we must all hang together or assuredly we shall all hang separately."

When God likened the church to a body, He was stressing the importance of rela tionships. A body begins with a single cell. But it would never become a body if it re-

THE MINISTRY

mained just one cell. The various cells of a body relate themselves in fellowship with other cells, otherwise there can be no real growth. We are informed that there are about 10 trillion cells in the human body. We are unconscious of them; in fact, we know very little about them. This we know, however, that if a couple of these tiny cells start setting up housekeeping on their own and break fellowship from the rest, it is not long before others join them, and soon that offshoot group grows into a tumor. Unless that mass is severed from the rest, it will in all probability become malignant and destroy the whole body. At times these inward growths work so subtly that we are unaware of their existence until it is too late.

Proper relationship of cell to cell in the group makes the body live and function. How true this is with the body of Christ the church! Note these words of wisdom:

In connection with the proclamation of the mes sage in large cities, there are many kinds of work to be done by laborers with varied gifts. Some are to labor in one way, some in another. Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 109.

One worker may be a ready speaker; another a ready writer; another may have the gift of sincere, earnest, fervent prayer. Ibid., p. 144.

The last-named worker may be some what unusual in the make-up of an evange listic team. Here is one who may not have the ability even to write a good report for the newspapers; he may never be chosen to present the message from the pulpit nor to sing a solo. But if he has the gift of sin cere, earnest, fervent prayer, his place on an evangelistic team is important. Actually, this is a gift each of us could wisely covet.

Charles G. Finney, one of the greatest re vivalists of the last century, was unusual in many ways. He was doing a great work just as the Advent Movement was coming into being. He was a persuasive preacher and also a great educator. In fact, he it was who really laid the foundations of Oberlin Col lege in Ohio, which conducted its work on the same pattern as our colleges. Finney was its founder. Before becoming a minis ter he was a lawyer, and he preached with the precision and clarity of an attorney ap pealing to a jury. In his evangelistic work men of differing gifts joined him. Among others was a man by the name of Abel Clary. Finney's account of his association with this minister is arresting. He says:

"When I was on my way to Rochester, as we

JUNE, 1961

passed through a village, some thirty miles east of Rochester, a brother minister whom I knew, seeing me on the canal boat, jumped aboard to have a little conversation with me, intending to ride but a little way and return. He, however, became in terested in conversation, and upon finding where I was going, he made up his mind to keep on and go with me to Rochester. We had been there but a few days when this minister became so convicted that he could not help weeping aloud at one time as we passed along the street. The Lord gave him a powerful spirit of prayer, and his spirit was broken. As he and I prayed together, I was struck with his faith in regard to what the Lord was go ing to do there. I recollect he would say, 'Lord, I do not know how it is; but I seem to know that Thou art going to do a great work in this city.' The spirit of prayer was poured out powerfully, so much so that some persons stayed away from the public services to pray, being unable to restrain their feelings under preaching."

Finney said Abel Clary"was the son of a very excellent man, and an elder of the church where I was converted. He was converted in the same revival in which I was. He had been licensed to preach; but his spirit of prayer was such, he was so burdened with the souls of men, that he was not able to preach much, his whole time and strength being given to prayer. The burden of his soul would frequently be so great that he was unable to stand, and he would writhe and groan in agony. I was well acquainted with him, and knew something of the wonderful spirit of prayer that was upon him. He was a very silent man, as almost all are who have that powerful spirit of prayer." CHARLES G. FINNEY quoted in R. A. Torrey, How to Promote and Conduct a Successful Revival, pp. 20, 21.

Finney's revivals were built largely by prayer. That was the secret of his out standing success. Actually, that is no secret at all; it is the only way real success in soul winning can come. An evangelistic campaign must be more than just a series of meetings it should be a real revival. When hearts are revived they feel the need of prayer. And we must never forget that prayer is the cutting edge of all true evan gelism. Of course, we need powerful preach ers, but more than that, we need men and women who know how to talk with God and wrestle in prayer for the lost.

Not everyone on the evangelistic team may be called to do a spectacular work, but all should have the burden of sincere, fervent prayer. We read that some have "the gift of singing." How fortunate when a team has some with musical gifts fully dedicated to God! "Special power to ex plain the Word of God with clearness" is another gift. No evangelistic team ever

NoticeThe action taken at the Fall Council urging our conferences to honor their aged

workers by supplying The Ministry has naturally sounded a note of optimism, and from all parts of the world field we are receiving expressions of appreciation from our minis ters who for long years bore the heavy burden of the work but who now are in retire ment. We have been encouraged by the fact that some of our largest unions have been the first to respond in this excellent gesture. If some have not as yet received word of this, we are confident that you will soon be notified.

To be able to supply The Ministry to this group of workers is made possible by the fact that the union and local conferences as well as the journal office share the expense. Many of our overseas organizations supply The Ministry to their ministerial sustentation beneficiaries, which is much appreciated. It would be well if more of our fields could adopt this plan.

May the Lord guide and bless you tried and trusted workers who, although not so active these days, are nevertheless sharing the burdens of the ministry by your prayers and sympathetic counsel. R. A. A.

seems to have sufficient Bible instructors. But actually, every member of the group should make the opportunity to go out and explain the Word of God to people in their homes. This will do more to develop real team spirit than perhaps anything else.

A team becomes such only as the mem bers of that team work together. Each must know the other's strengths as well as his weaknesses. But the association of workers is important. Jesus knew how to combine men. He chose the rather impetuous Peter to work with the quiet, tactful John. Peter was often outspoken, but John afterward poured the oil of healing into troubled hearts. We need some Peters, but we also need Johns. Two Peters together might create a problem. But when we combine different types of workers, we are follow ing the divine pattern.

Paul said, "Let each esteem other better than themselves." It takes a lot of grace at times to follow this instruction. But this is the spirit that wins the day. Yes, the spirit of the team is more important than the size of the team. We live in dangerous days. Fear has gripped the nations. Yet this is the time God declares He will do His greatest work. His message does not need to be changed because of the changing times. That which we have been preach ing for a century is the message we are to bear in this great hour. But we must pro claim it in the setting of the times. Some seem to think that if certain worn-out ex pressions are replaced by something more appealing to our generation, it is a depart ing from the faith, and they begin to criti

cize and condemn. The clear counsel of the Spirit of Prophecy is that we should keep abreast of the times. As members of God's team, let us pray each for the other, asking God to keep us happy and confident what ever place we occupy, remembering that there are no "big" people on this team, for we are all members together.

Two generations ago, before the inven tion of electric blowers, pipe organs had to be pumped by hand. Boys were usually hired as blowers. In one old church in England it was heavy work to keep the bel lows full when the organ was pealing forth in full volume. But the boy they had was faithful. One Sunday things went exception ally well, and the little fellow said to the organist, "We did pretty well today, didn't we?"

"We!" exclaimed the organist. "All you had to do was to pump. / am the one who did well." The lad was hurt, but he had a sense of humor, and the next Sunday he had his revenge. Just as the musician reached his climax the boy stopped pump ing. Sensing that the pressure was going, the frantic organist called in a real stage whisper, "Pump, my boy! Pump!" But the lad folded his arms. "You can do it your self today," he said. That organist learned through humiliation that the boy at the pump was also important to the program. Without him the cleverest man at the key board was of little use. The boy was not accomplished, but he was important for the job he had to do. So every person on an evangelistic team is important to the total program.

THE MINISTRY

Pentecostal success follows Pentecostal preparation. Like the early evangelists we must strive to kindle the love of God in the hearts of all with whom we serve, re membering that "we have no great men among us, and none need try to make them selves what they are not, remarkable men." "The Lord bids me counsel them to walk humbly and prayerfully with Him. ... Be

willing to be little men handling great sub jects." Evangelism, p. 134. Our power is not in the position we hold on the team but in the message we are called to pro claim.

"The work of every faithful laborer lies close to the heart of Him who gave Him self for the redemption of the race." Ibid., p. 116. R. A. A.

Supply and DemandG. D. KING

Secretary, Northern European Division

THE economic law of supply and demand has its byplay in the great program

of denominational service. Administrators constantly are faced with the pressure that comes from the great outreach of Christian missions, which is now taking new forms, being conditioned by the modern factors that are having a great effect on the life of the world, particularly in Africa.

Denominationally, we are naturally greatly impressed by the sacrificial service given by our missionaries of an earlier day. Thirty or forty years ago young men and women were called to give their lives in service for Africa, when they perhaps had little else to offer beyond their own deep dedication and consecration to the work of God. Their personal resources in education were limited by reason of the opportunities that had been available to them in personal preparation. The demand in those days was also limited, by reason of the state of de velopment in the territory to which they were assigned. They were called upon un der these conditions to make sacrifices that many present-day workers fail to under stand.

However, the calls for workers and the opportunities for service have not become less. In many respects the demands are greater, and the conditions are entirely dif ferent. The same sterling qualities of dedica tion and consecration are called for today in those who respond for service overseas. The Prime Minister of Britain some time ago coined a phrase that has pinpointed the situation in Africa today, when he spoke of "the wind of change that is sweep ing over Africa." This "wind of change," as seen in the great desire for education, medi-

JUNE,1961

cal service, and other modern necessities, is bringing an increasing pressure in our mis sion program. No longer can we send young men and women merely equipped with the qualities of dedication and consecration. These they must possess; these are essential in any place of service. But along with these great qualities, education and skilled techniques are essential if mission service is to be effective. The demand today is for qualified personnel, so that in the fields of medicine, education, and evangelism, work ers from overseas will be able to stand alongside the national workers of these new lands, working with them in a brotherly co operation that makes for mutual respect and effective teamwork. Many years ago the famous African educator, Dr. K. Ag- grey, stated that "nothing but the best is good enough for Africa." If that was true at that time years ago, it certainly is doubly true today. Constantly the mission board is being faced with an increasing demand for qualified personnel, and our schools and colleges must rise to the opportunity and challenge that now confronts them in sup plying this need, and our young people must meet the demand with the old-time dedication and consecration, in such a way as to be worthy of the past and ably equipped for the future.

We have just received a copy of the first edition of our Japan Union Mission ministerial magazine. Its name, Bokuyo, in English means "The Shep herd."

We trust this ministerial magazine will prove to be the inspiration and blessing The Ministry has been to its readers.

The Hour of God's Judgment Is Come*EDWARD HEPPENSTALL

Professor of Systematic Theology, Andrews University

/. Importance of the Heavenly Sanctuary

w>F HEN Scripture portrays either in fact or in symbol

the progress of the great con troversy between Christ and Satan, between the genuine and the counterfeit, the heav enly sanctuary and Christ's ministration therein occupy a

central place. As the controversy draws to its climax, the sanctuary and its ministra tion hold the spotlight. In Satan's endeavor to overthrow God, the point of attack is upon God's sanctuary and His throne.

As one studies the controversy between good and evil forces in the eighth chapter of Daniel, two things relative to the sanc tuary and its ministration are indicated.

First, up until the close of the 2300-year prophecy, 1844, men's understanding of Christ's priestly ministration in the heav enly sanctuary had been seriously impaired in its effectiveness on the earth at the hands of Satan's counterfeit priestly system. De scribing the nefarious work of the little horn against the sanctuary of God, the Scripture declares, "by him the daily sacri fice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down" (verse 11).

Second, the Scripture further declares that this will not always be so. So compel ling is the work of this counterfeit system that the all-important question is asked, "How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?" (verse 13). There will come a change at the close of the 2300-year period, in 1844, declares the Scripture. "Then shall the sanctuary be cleansed" (margin, "justified"). "Then shall the sanctuary be restored to its right ful state" (R.S.V.).

* Our readers will appreciate this broad view of the sub ject of the judgment hour in the light of the sanctuary service. This will answer some questions arising from the book The Truth About Seventh-day Adventism by Walter R. Martin. EDITORS.

At that time, then, things will come to pass that will restore the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary to its right ful place as God brings the great contro versy to a victorious climax.

Since Scripture is so specific and final in its declaration, it is important that we grasp the significance of the work of the heavenly sanctuary in the closing work of God. Daniel pictures the work of restora tion of the heavenly sanctuary as an essen tial part of God's closing work of redemp tion and judgment.

The obvious conclusion to be drawn from Daniel 8:11-14 is that beginning in 1844 something of supreme importance is to take place relative to the work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary; that now in the time of the end, this sanctuary ministration is to play a leading part in bringing about the consummation of all things. When the spotlight of prophecy focuses attention upon the heavenly sanctuary in connection with this great time prophecy, are we now to dismiss the whole thing by declaring that nothing new is happening, and take for granted that things continue simply as they were since Christ ascended? Should not our attention be drawn to the sanc tuary in heaven, where, we believe, God has now some significant revelation to give to us? Since God in prophecy has indicated the significance of the heavenly sanctuary, we must follow Christ's ministry there.

Should not this very prophecy and the sanctuary emphasis lead us at once to con sider all that is revealed about the sanc tuary? There is very little said in this chap ter in Daniel as to the meaning and nature of this "cleansing," this "justification," this "restoring." All the passage says is that at a certain time in God's great calendar of celestial events the heavenly sanctuary will come into focus in a way that should arrest the attention of all. We are thus invited to bring into focus everything we find in the Scripture on the sanctuary, especially as it pertains to the closing work of God in heaven and on the earth.

THE MINISTRY

The Word of God speaks of only two sanctuaries: one on earth and the other in heaven; one in type and the other the antitype. They both teach that the central truth and activity of the sanctuary is that of the mediatorial ministration of our great High Priest; that this ministration is twofold, spoken of as the "daily" and the "yearly," or day of atonement.

Other prophecies also focus attention upon the heavenly sanctuary, showing that the ministration of Christ holds the key to the consummation of the great controversy, how it is to be brought about, and what the outcome will be. That the sanctuary and Christ's ministration should hold the spot light is at once obvious; for here we see the work of atonement, redemption, judgment; in a word, here is the answer to the whole sin problem, and how that problem is to be resolved. Can there be any greater issue for men and women to understand than this? Can we concentrate our attention upon anything greater than that which resolves the terrible problem of sin that has gripped this world for almost six thousand years and threatened the very security of the uni verse? If there is one question men want answered, it is the sin problem. Solve this and everything is solved. It is no wonder that other prophecies in the books of Dan iel and the Revelation center in the activ ity of God from His throne in the heavenly sanctuary.

The prophecy of Daniel 7 gives a sweep of world kingdoms and events down to the end of time. What is the divine answer to the dominion of world powers and the little horn? Where is the solution to be found? At once the prophecy takes us into the heavenly sanctuary, to the throne of God. There it is in the work of judgment at the throne that the issue is decided and God is triumphant over His enemies.

Daniel 11 and 12 show the rise and fall of worldly kingdoms, the consequent rise and power of the papacy in its attack upon the truth of God revealed in the sanctuary, upon God Himself, even to the time of the end. What is the divine answer to this? It is the standing up of Michael in the heav

enly sanctuary for the deliverance of God's people following the declaration that "at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book" (chapter 12:1).

In Revelation 4-7 we are taken imme diately into the throne room of the heav enly sanctuary. The prophet John beholds the same judgment scene that Daniel saw in chapter 7, the setting up of the great heavenly assize in the heavenly sanctuary, the opening of the books of judgment that is so decisive for the destiny of the saints of God. It is here only that we see that in the sealing of the true saints it is God alone who knows and decides cases. No where else can this be done, either by the Roman Catholic Church or any other church.

Before the angels are commissioned to sound the seven trumpets, and before the trumpets can sound, John is shown an an gel inside the heavenly sanctuary, who fills the golden censer with fire and casts it unto the earth (Revelation 8). It is the action in heaven that determines the ac tion on the earth.

The sounding of the seventh trumpet (Rev. 11:15-19) ushers in the rule of

Christ. But dominion and glory are de clared first in the heavenly sanctuary, as in Daniel 7:13, 14, Christ receives this do minion here before it is realized upon the earth. "The kingdoms of this world are be come the kingdoms of our Lord. . . . And the four and twenty elders, which sat be fore God on their seats {thrones] fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Al mighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. . . . And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament" (chapter 11:15-19). We ex claim with the psalmist, "Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?" (Ps. 77:13).

Revelation, chapter 10, is a chapter of superlatives connected with the finishing of the mystery of God on the earth.

FAITH-

^ The ablest men in all walks of modern life are men of faith. Most of them have much more faith than they themselves realize. Brttce Barton.

JUNE,1961

Wherein lies the answer to the bitter expe rience with the little book that so affects the proclamation of the final message to the world? In chapter 11:1, 2, John is com manded to "rise, and measure the temple [naos, the inner part of the heavenly sanc tuary] of God, and them that worship therein." Again, it is the sanctuary that holds the key, the understanding of God's work in the sanctuary that holds the secret of what these prophecies mean and the destiny of God's work in the earth.

Revelation 14 graphically portrays the last threefold message to the world, which is to usher in the return of our Lord; the time has come for the harvest of the earth to be reaped. Two harvests are set forth, the harvest of the righteous and of the wicked. How are these determined? From what place does the command go forth and the work of harvest proceed? It is from the sanctuary in heaven that all this action proceeds: "And another angel came out of the temple" (verses 15, 18). The subsequent action that takes place upon the earth is always preceded by the action of God from His throne in the heavenly sanctuary.

Likewise the judgment of God upon the nations in the seven last plagues pictured in Revelation 15 and 16 is directed from God's throne in the heavenly sanctuary (chapters 15:5, 6, 8; 16:1, 5).

Revelation 19 pictures the time for the marriage of the Lamb (Christ) to His bride (the church). Christ is pictured as coming forth to receive His bride; from whence does He come? What is the signal for this glorious event? The declaration is made from the heavenly sanctuary "his wife hath made herself ready" (verse 7). How is this known? Where can such a truth be discovered? How is this readiness determined? Only from God's throne, which is in the heavenly sanctuary. This marks the focal point in Christ's final ac tivities at the end of the world. The heav enly sanctuary has revealed and declared

Social Security Amendments for 1960

Some of our readers may like to be reminded of the following statement from the recent Social Se curity pamphlet: "Ministers who failed to take action to elect Social Security coverage by April 15, 1959, now have until April 15, 1962, to file cer tificates indicating they want to be covered."

H. W. L.

10

the readiness of the bride; the Lord arises from His throne and prepares Himself to come for her. He will ride forth to exert His power and dominion; He will bring to pass all His promises and cherished hopes relative to His people.

One does not need to be an expert theo logian to recognize the remarkable signifi cance and importance of the heavenly sanctuary in the consummation of the great controversy. If one believes the word of God revealed in the books of Daniel and the Revelation, then the central feature of God's sanctuary and His ministration is obvious. Revelation is the book of the Lamb; but the Lamb is not upon the cross. He is on the throne in the heavenly sanc tuary (Rev. 5:6). "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being recon ciled, we shall be saved by his life" (Rom. 5:10). "We might have a strong consola tion, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerun ner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Mel- chisedec" (Heb. 6:18-20).

It is this truth concerning Christ's min istration in the sanctuary that was ob scured by the counterfeit system of the lit tle horn during the period of papal su premacy. But now the full message of Christ's work in the heavenly sanctuary is to be restored and proclaimed.

If one wishes to understand the whole truth about God's plan of redemption from the entrance of sin to the ultimate destruc tion of it, one has only to study God's work in the sanctuary in heaven and in the type here on earth. There is no mistak ing its message, its completeness, and its significance. Satan's purpose becomes clear in his attack upon and opposition to the work of the heavenly sanctuary. Here we understand the utmost of satanic opposi tion to God through the centuries in his counterfeit system, his insistent attempt to obscure the work of the sanctuary and its place in the plan of redemption.

At the same time, it becomes equally clear how necessary and indispensable to the finishing of the work of God is the restoration of the truth about Christ's sanc tuary ministration. Ellen G. White states that the sanctuary "opened to view a com-

THE MINISTRY

plete system of truth, connected and har monious, showing that God's hand had di rected the great Advent Movement." The Great Controversy, p. 423. It "is the very center of Christ's work in behalf of men." Ibid., p. 488. No revelation of truth has received greater opposition from Satan than this. For it is here that the issues are laid bare and decided; it is here that Christ receives dominion, glory, and a kingdom. It is here that the throne of God is seen in proper perspective.

Seventh-day Adventists believe that the sanctuary truths provide the solution to the sin problem, that the ministration of Christ from the throne is essential in re solving this terrible sin tragedy, and that it is the natural consequence of the death of Christ upon the cross. This is not in any way to deny the complete atonement for sin made once for all at the cross. We do recognize that following the work of Christ on earth there is another vitally important work in heaven before the sin problem can be resolved. Adventists anticipate the glo rious consummation of the work of God in this generation. We see not all things put under the feet of Christ; we still see that the complete solution to the sin problem has not been brought about. We believe that this is the hour when the controversy between Christ and Satan will be intensi1 fied, but it will end in glorious victory for our Lord. Adventists believe that in this great conflict the answer can be found in the work of Christ from the heavenly sanc tuary and nowhere else.

We feel that Walter Martin, in his criti cism of Adventists on this point, while em phasizing our position concerning the work of Christ on the cross relative to the atone ment for sin, has not given proper place and consideration to the full work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary. Any cor rect interpretation of the Adventist posi tion must be understood in the light of this over-all divine program for the com plete solution of the sin problem.

//. The Judgment in Prophecy and Doctrine

We are concerned in particular with the Adventist interpretation of Christ's work in the heavenly sanctuary since 1844. Two questions need to be resolved: First, is there a judgment going on now which began in 1844? and second, what is the nature and scope of this judgment?

During the past two years in particular

JUNE, 1961

SOME BOOKS I CAN RECOMMEND

B. F. KinmanTemperance and Missionary Volunteer Secretary

British Union Conference

The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, by C. H. Spurgeon, Passmore and Alabaster, London.

There are actually twenty volumes in this full work of sermons preached by the prince of preach ers during his twenty years at the famous Metro politan Tabernacle, London. When first published, four or five volumes of sermons appeared in each book, but there have been many editions, and there are American, Dutch, German, Swedish, and Ital ian editions obtainable today. To me some of these sermons contain much of the most beautiful thought in simile that can be found anywhere in the reper toire of a great preacher. A few of his statements are not doctrinally acceptable to us, but by and large his doctrinal approach is very near our own.

The Way to Pentecost, by Dr. Samuel Chadwick, late principal, Cliff College, Sheffield, England, Hodder and Stoughton, London, England.

This book is in some ways a remarkable vol ume. Throughout his ministry Dr. Chadwick gave exceptional prominence to the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, and in many of his books he does not hesi tate to share with the reader some of the great moments of his personal experience. When I read this book I felt that I had been sitting at the feet of one whose ear the Lord had opened.

Psychology and Pastoral Practice, by W. L.. North- ridge, M.A., Epworth Press, London, England.

I found that this book opens up a new kind of pastoral work tending toward the relief of mental and physical suffering. After having read it the reader will know enough to discuss people's diffi culties with them with insight and understanding. The book has been written for ministers in non technical language except where a few technical terms were unavoidable, and then they are ex plained.

I can thoroughly recommend this book to all who wish to be of service to the growing number in every congregation who are mentally troubled.

the judgment concept as held by Seventh- day Adventists has come under severe criti cism, with particular emphasis upon our interpretation of Daniel 8:14 and Revela tion 14:7. Adventists declare that these texts show that beginning in 1844 the hour of God's judgment began. We have inter-

11

preted this judgment with specific refer ence to two things: First, a work that is go ing on now in the heavenly sanctuary; and second, that this judgment concerns the saints of all ages, at which time their cases will finally be decided before the court of heaven.

In his recent book The Truth About Seventh-day Adventism, Walter Martin seeks to refute the Adventist position. He writes as follows:

But the Adventists' error is that they draw from the Scriptures interpretations which cannot be sub stantiated by exegesis but rest largely upon in ference and deduction, drawn from theological ap- plications of their own design. Page 176.

Seventh-day Adventists, relying upon Daniel 8:14, Daniel 7:9, 10, Rev. 14:7 and 11:18, which refer to "judgment," and "books," attempt to "prove" that

It is vain to expect any advantage from our pro fession of the truth if we be not sincerely just and honest in our actions.—Sharpe.

the investigative judgment is meant, but examina tion of each of these texts in context reveals the paucity of the claim. None of these texts has any thing to do with any judgment now going on. . . . It is significant that non-Adventist Biblical scholars have never allowed these so-called "investigative judgment" interpretations, because there is no Scriptural warrant for them apart from implication and inference. Page 180.

Adventists, in the opinion of conservative Bibli cal scholars, not to mention the liberal wing of Protestantism, are only speculating with their sanc tuary and investigative judgment theories. Actually, most are agreed that they have created doctrines to compensate for errors in prophetic interpretation. . . . Seventh-day Adventists, we believe, needlessly subscribe to a doctrine which neither solves their difficulties nor engenders peace of mind. Holding as they do to the doctrine of the Investigative Judg ment, it is extremely difficult for us to understand how they can experience the joy of salvation and the knowledge of sins forgiven. Pages 182, 183.

Is there a judgment now going on which began in 1844? Is there scriptural warrant for this? What is the message of the proph ecies of the book of Revelation? Two words give us the basis for a proper interpreta tion of these prophecies for the last days: redemption and judgment. As one studies the book it seems that God's work in heaven during the time of the end is largely a work of judgment. Furthermore, all judg ment is seen proceeding from the throne room of the heavenly sanctuary, from the

12

temple (Greek naos) (Rev. 8; 9:11-21; 17; 18; 20). Revelation is a book that deals largely with events that are to happen in connection with the consummation of the great controversy between Christ and Satan. In the broadest sense God's work of judg ment is His work of bringing to consum mation His work on earth, His divine ac tivity in the heavenly sanctuary whether it pertains to His own people, the nations of the world, or Satan and his counterfeit system.

Much of the work of judgment is re vealed as taking place prior to the second coming of Christ; in fact, this work of judg ment is essential if the return of our Lord is to be realized. Without this work of judg ment from the throne of God, there can be no end to the present reign. Certain aspects of the judgment make it possible for Christ to proclaim Himself as Lord of lords and King of kings. Once this is understood, then the various phases of the work of judgment can be correctly placed. Evi dently this is the intent of the passage in Revelation 14:6-14, where the work of judgment, the hour of God's judgment, is pictured as prior to the Second Advent and leading up to it.

Why does Scripture set forth so much of the work of God from the throne room of

I know the Bible is inspired because it finds me at greater depths of my being than any other book. —Coleridge.

the heavenly sanctuary after 1844 as a work of judgment? Obviously, God's purpose is that the attention of men everywhere shall be called to this unique work of the high priestly ministration of Christ, that it is to God on His throne we must look for the consummation of all things. What happens on the earth is not isolated from God's work in heaven. What is taking place to usher in the consummation of all things is directly related to and is the result of Christ's work in the heavenly sanctuary. The prophecies relating to the time of the end are now being fulfilled because our blessed Lord is now directing all these things from His throne.

Seventh-day Adventists insist that the knowledge of the work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary during this time of the end is imperative to the proper under standing of the closing scenes of the great

THE MINISTRY

controversy between Christ and Satan.If God intends to bring the world to an

end in our day through His work of judg ment and redemption, and if the books of Daniel and Revelation present to us the sublime prophecies of this last hour, then it is of paramount importance that men eve ".where know it. This work of Christ in briiijing all this about is, in the books of Daniel and Revelation, declared to be God's work of judgment. That is the reason these books are full of such a message. The hour of judgment is the time of decision and finality, when the cases of men and of nations are determined by the great Judge of the universe. This requires activity both in heaven and on the earth. The day in which we live is a day of final reckoning for all.

This hour of God's judgment, prior to the Second Advent, is graphically por trayed in Daniel, chapter 7. The sequence of events shows the rise of the four great world kingdoms Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. These are followed by the appearance of the mystery of iniquity, the little horn in its attack upon God, upon His truth and His law, upon the sanctuary, and upon the saints of God. This work of the little horn is pictured at the height of its power as continuing until the close of the 1260 days, that is, until 1798. What happens then? God's answer to all this is in His work of judgment. Three times in this chapter the work of judgment from the throne room of the heavenly sanc tuary is pictured as following almost im mediately upon the period of papal suprem acy (Dan. 7:9, 10, 21, 22, 25, 26). There can be no mistaking the significance of this work of judgment prior to the Second Ad vent. This is the hour when God will set His throne in the heavenly sanctuary in a great heavenly assize that will determine the destiny of the great controversy.

The historical sequence of Daniel 7 shows the earthly powers in opposition to God, holding sway over the kingdoms of the earth, exercising dominion over the minds and hearts of men. As the drama unfolds we see this dominion passing from the powers

of the world and Satan back to Christ, the rightful ruler. How this is brought about is declared in Scripture to be God's work of judgment. Throughout the greater part of the conflict between truth and error it ap pears that the saints are being overthrown, that oppression is too great for them to sur vive; even the truth and the law of God is being trampled underfoot; everywhere it appears that the forces of evil are in the su premacy; then comes a dramatic change. A

Adversity is the diamond dust heaven polishes its jewels with.—Leighton.

scene is pictured in heaven; the court of judgment is established. God is seated on His throne, and the judgment begins. Events occur both in heaven and on earth as a result of this supreme work of judg ment. God now breaks into the world or der from His throne room in the heavenly sanctuary. Hitherto the work has been lim ited to the work of redemption, but now the work of judgment is added. Judgment is declared and given against the little horn and the opposing powers in favor of the saints. The throne of God is established by His work of judgment; God's throne is vindicated and justified in all its sovereign ministration. In the process the opposing powers are condemned and ultimately de stroyed, while "the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom" (verse 22).

That this judgment is not an action which has been continuously in progress during the dominion of these earthly king doms is evident from the fact that not until the work of the little horn has held sway for 1260 years is the work of judgment said to begin. The fact that there is a sequence in the rise and development and overthrow of the kingdoms of the world proves that this judgment is part of that same sequence of time.

Daniel 7:9, 10, states: "I beheld till the thrones were cast down {placed], and the Ancient of days [God the Father] did sit. . . . The judgment was set, and the books

(Continued on page 30}

LOOKING UPWARD-

f£ It is a good thing to believe; it is a good thing to admire. By continually looking upward, our minds will themselves grow upward; a man, by indulging in habits of scorn and contempt for others, is sure to descend to the level of those he despises.

JUNE,1961 13

The Basis of Christian BeliefF. G. CLIFFORD

President, Australasian Division

I'I N HIS book The Truth About Seventh-day Advent-

ism Walter R. Martin takes issue with us regarding our insistence on observing the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath. In seeking to de stroy the evidence upon which

Seventh-day Adventists rest their case for the seventh day, Mr. Martin reveals an at titude and type of reasoning that is indeed strange.

After having made clear that Seventh- day Adventists believe in and base a large part of their case for the seventh day on the Bible story of Creation, he makes this re markable statement: "Thus their case rests very heavily upon a literal 24-hour-day creation theory which is contradicted by the findings of the majority of responsible scientists. Scores of volumes have been writ ten on this subject, and we feel that the Ad- ventist position sorely lacks conclusive scientific support." Page 161.

Here Mr. Martin reveals that he expects to have the statements of Scripture sup ported by the majority of responsible scientists before they can be accepted as a basis for Christian belief. This is a position one would expect to be taken only by those who are termed Modernists.

Suppose we follow Mr. Martin in his chain of reasoning. If we must have scien tific support, and "conclusive" support at that, for the fundamentals of the Christian faith which we firmly believe Mr. Martin holds, how will these fundamentals fare?

Let us take for example the incarnation, the virgin birth, the resurrection, the new birth, the ascension of Christ, the existence of heaven, and the existence of God. These are all fundamental truths of the Christian faith to which we feel certain Mr. Martin freely subscribes. On what are these funda mental beliefs based? Do any of them re ceive conclusive scientific support? We ex pect Mr. Martin would reject the very sug-

14

gestion that these truths are not acceptable to evangelical Christians because they find their origin and receive practically their only support from the words of Scripture. If Mr. Martin were to bring the argument he has used against the Sabbath to bear upon his own most cherished beliefs, he would have to discard most if not all of them. He would have no Christian faith remaining.

For Mr. Martin to be reduced to use such self-destructive reasoning is an indication of the straits in which those who oppose the Bible Sabbath find themselves. It also high lights the fact that the Sabbath is based solely upon a "Thus saith the Lord."

Another illuminative fact that is thus brought to our attention is the significance of the message of Revelation 14:6, 7. From the beginning of our history we have de clared that the Sabbath is associated with the everlasting gospel. We have believed that the gospel included a belief in the story of man's creation, fall, and redemp tion as outlined in Holy Writ. We have be lieved that the process of creation and re demption are both utterly dependent upon the power of God, "For he spake, and it was done." The miracle of instantaneous crea tion and the miracle of instantaneous con version are all of one. We have never sug gested that scientific confirmation was es sential for either. The Sabbath is to one a memorial and of the other a sign. To seek for scientific explanation of creation or conversion would be to seek for a doctrine of works some rational explanation that would substitute for God's power and God's grace.

We are sure Mr. Martin did not intend that his argument against the Sabbath should be carried to its logical conclusion. We can only conclude that the reason for the Sabbath based upon Creation stands fast and secure unless we are prepared to deny and destroy the entire gospel of salva tion.

THE MINISTRY

RESEARCH-Theology, History, Science

Jesus and the TrinityOTTO H. CHRISTENSEN

Language and Literature Professor, Southern Missionary College

N'I O DOUBT in recent years many of our workers have

had to deal with the question of Jesus, His origin, and His relation to the other members of the Godhead. Often over- enthusiastic and misled reli gious workers going from

house to house have succeeded in confus ing the minds of truehearted and truth- seeking people, and reviving portions at least of the early Arian controversy. It was to answer this challenge that many years ago I began a study of this question that has perplexed but not often been studied by the layman or possibly even by many ministers. We have taken the teaching of the Trinity for granted, and the problem texts have been passed by without too much concern until we have been com pelled to meet the challenge. That was ex actly my position. As a result of the chal lenge many hours of research in the Scrip tures have been spent, that Biblical evi dence might be presented that would also be in harmony with the statements of the Spirit of Prophecy. The conclusions ar rived at are based on a general study of the Scriptures and the Spirit of Prophecy and not on merely two or three isolated texts strained to support a theory.

The Problem

The immediate problem involves a full harmonization of such Biblical statements concerning Jesus as "All power is given unto me" (Matt. 28:18); "the Father him self, which hath sent me" (John 5:37); "my father is greater than I" (John 14: 28); "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John 5:30); "the beginning of the crea-

JUNE,1961

tion of God" (Rev. 3:14); "the firstborn of every creature" (Col. 1:15) with other statements that make Him one with the Father from eternity. How can we recon cile these statements with Micah 5:2 where, speaking of Jesus, it says His "goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting," or with John 10:30, "I and my Father are one," or with John 1:3, "All things were made by him," or even with Colossians 2: 9, "In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." The latter statements are fully supported by Sister White's writ ings.

If Christ made all things, He existed before all things. The words spoken in regard to this are so decisive that no one need be left in doubt. Christ was God essentially, and in the highest sense. He was with God from all eternity, God over all, blessed forevermore.

The Lord Jesus Christ, the divine Son of God, existed from eternity, a distinct person, yet one with the Father. The Review and Herald, April 5, 1906.

Christ was the Son of God; He had been one with Him before the angels were called into exist ence. He had ever stood at the right hand of the Father. Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 38.

In Christ was life, original, unborrowed, unde- rived. The Desire of Ages, p. 530.

Several questions arise from these state ments. Why was all power given to Him? Didn't He already have it? Why did the Father send Him? Couldn't He send Him self? Why does He say, "My Father is greater than I" if He was God essentially in the highest sense? Why did He say, "I can of mine own self do nothing"? These are problems that must be solved if we are to meet the claims of those who place Christ on an inferior plane as an inferior God.

Although we cannot solve all that per tains to God and the plan of salvation, which will be a theme of study throughout eternity, yet we are told that "we must sink the shaft deep in the mine of truth." ELLEN G. WHITE in The Review and Herald, March 25, 1890.

It is the glory of God to conceal Himself and His ways, not by keeping men in ignorance of heavenly light and knowledge, but by surpassing the utmost capacity of men to know. Humanity can comprehend in part, but that is all that man can bear. Bible Echoes, No. 17, April 30, 1894.

God intends that to the earnest seeker the truths of His Word shall be ever unfolding. While "the secret things belong unto the Lord our God," "those things that are revealed belong unto us and to our children." The idea that certain portions of the Bible can not be understood has led to neglect of some of its most important truths. The fact needs to be emphasized, and often repeated, that the mysteries of the Bible are not such because God has sought to conceal truth, but because our own weakness or ignorance makes us incapable of comprehending or appropriating truth. The limita tion is not in its purpose, but in our capacity. Of those very portions of Scripture so often passed by as impossible to be understood, God desires us to understand as much as our minds are capable of receiving. "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God," that we may be "thoroughly furnished unto all good works." Signs of the Times, April 25, 1906.

This problem that involves the sover eignty of God and the relationship of the members of the Godhead to each other as revealed in the Scriptures is by that very revelation a part of the great plan of sal vation. This is "the science that enters into the purpose brooded in the mind of the Infinite, 'kept in silence through times eternal;' the science that will be the study

Next to acquiring good friends, the best acquisi tion is that of good books.—Colton.

of God's redeemed throughout the endless ages. This is the highest study in which it is possible for man to engage." Ibid., April 18, 1906. "The plan for our redemp tion was not an afterthought, a plan for mulated after the fall of Adam. It was a revelation of 'the mystery which hath been kept in silence through times eternal.' Rom. 16:25, R.V. It was an unfolding of the principles that from eternal ages have been the foundation of God's throne. From the beginning, God and Christ knew of the apostasy of Satan, and of the fall of man

16

through the deceptive power of the apostate." The Desire of Ages, p. 22.

In reading the Spirit of Prophecy on this theme, as in the above quotations from The Desire of Ages and the chapter on "The Plan of Redemption" in Patri archs and Prophets, page 63 and onward, one must be careful not to read something into those words that the author never in tended. For instance, we know that the second person of the Godhead received the name Jesus at His birth because it means "Saviour." Likewise, we also know that the name Christ is a translation of the Hebrew

Brevity is the best recommendation of speech, whether in a senator or an orator.—Cicero.

term Messiah and they both mean "the Anointed One." Acts 10:38 and Matthew 3:16 indicate clearly that this anointing took place at His baptism, when He be came the Christ. Yet Ellen G. White uses those very names for Him long before they were actually conferred on Him by virtue of His position or work in connection with our salvation. In The Desire of Ages, page 19, she says, "From the days of eternity the Lord Jesus Christ was one with the Father." Thus the present names of God were used in the past before the signifi cance of the name became applicable. This is merely a rhetorical device that we constantly use in our English language but which cannot be used as proof of the time of the application of a name. When we speak of New York, referring to a time previous to 1664, we do not mean that the city was called New York at that time. We merely do it for clarity's sake. Just so with the names of Jesus in the Spirit of Proph ecy. He has been given many names in His connection with the plan of salvation that He never had before, but yet that did not change the fact that He was God. Thus we have such names as "Jesus," "Christ," "Immanuel," "Lamb of God," "Son of God," "Redeemer," all used of Him now in connection with any period of time simply because we are familiar with those terms and not to prove that He was any of them at some remote time in the past. If this caution is observed, we will avoid confusion in the study of this great theme.

Doctrine of the Trinity

The doctrine of the Trinity is a gener ally accepted doctrine of Christianity by

THE MINISTRY

all but a few. However, this does not neces sarily make it the truth. It becomes neces sary to establish it upon a scriptural foun dation. That there exist at present the three Beings of the Godhead, the Bible definitely supports. We shall deal with their pre-existence, power, and relation ship later. In Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus gave command that those baptized were to be baptized into the name of the three Fa ther, Son, and Holy Ghost. When Jesus promised the Holy Ghost, the Comforter (John 14:26), He said He would pray the Father and He would send the Holy Ghost. Here all three are distinctively mentioned. Paul, as he closes his letters to the Corin thians, uses the names of the three members of the Godhead in his benediction (2 Cor. 13:14). The order of mention is not the same as in Matthew 28:18-20. Again, in 1 Peter 1:2, in Peter's salutation he sets forth the work or office of each member of the Godhead in still a different order. This may not have any particular significance except to reveal the fact that there was no particular order of mention that bound the writers of Scripture. It would be a strong indication, at least, that even though their work and office were different, the unity was such that they were coequal. We can rest with confidence in the fact that the Scriptures support the doctrine of the Trinity without using 1 John 5:7, which textual critics recognize to be of question able origin.

Relationship of the Three Members of the Godhead

As for the relationship of the three mem bers of the Godhead, there is perfect unity. Each has His work, or office, but performs it in full harmony with the others. We are not told in Scripture as much about the office and work o£ the Father as we are of the other two. He probably can be thought of as the Designer, the Planner, the Pre dictor (Acts 2:23; 1 Peter 1:2). The Son is the Creator (John 1:1-3; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2). All things were made by Him. Hence He is the beginning of the creation of God (Rev. 3:14) and not Himself created. He began the great work of God's creation, as nothing was made without Him. He is also the Redeemer and Mediator (Acts 4:12; 1 Tim. 2:5). The Holy Spirit is the Com forter, Consoler (John 14:26), the In- spirer or Mover (2 Peter 1:21; Gen. 1:2). This does not mean that either one would

JUNE,1961

not be able to perform the function of the other, but in the perfect unity there is per fect order, and each one has His part that He fulfills in the general plan of unity.

From the texts given and others to be noted, we can confidently believe in a Trinity a triune God three distinct Be ings, each objective to the other. All are self-existing and self-existent. The three are equal in power and attributes. They are different in rank, which is assumed voluntarily because of their perfect unity. Nevertheless, each has the capacity and potentiality of the rank of each of the others. The Spirit does not send the Father, neither does the Son send the Father. Each has His office and work, but they are one in character, intent, and purpose. A

He who wishes to secure the good o£ others has already secured his own.—Confucius.

Trinity is a necessity from the viewpoint of eternal revelation. Only that which is like yourself can bring out what is in your self. If God were alone, no one could know Him. Only divinity can reveal divinity.

The question of the Trinity is clearly involved in this larger question of Christ's relation to the Godhead. God Himself is in a sense on trial, because trinitarians are compared with pagans who worship many gods. By the assertion from those who dis believe in the Trinity, Jehovah is claimed to be the Father and alone God, and Jesus Christ is relegated to a lower position and of unequal status with the Father. But if the Father alone is God, then Jesus cannot also be God, for that would still be a plu rality, as in paganism. Hence, according to the outcome of this teaching, Jesus cannot be God. Thus this specious argument is re vealed to be another plan of Satan in his long hatred of Jesus to dethrone Him, which those in fact (although ignorantly) are doing who declaim the Trinity and the eternal coexistence of Jesus with the Father.

Is Jesus God?

Let us now search the Scriptures to see if Jesus as well as the Father is declared to be God, and just who is Jehovah. Then we shall examine the problem of how He came to be the Son. In Revelation 1:18, 17, 8, Jesus, the one "that liveth, and was

17

dead," is declared to be "the first and the last," the "Alpha and Omega, . . . which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." Note also Revelation 22:12. 13. Angels are commanded to worship Him (Heb. 1:6). Jesus is the One who is to come and eventually set up His ever lasting kingdom on earth. See Daniel 7:13. 14 and Luke 1:32, 33. In Daniel 2:44 He, the One who is to "set up a kingdom," is called "the God of heaven." In Revela tion 17:14 He is called "Lord of lords, and King of kings." Note also Deuteronomy 10:17; 1 Timothy 6:14, 15; and Revelation 19:16, 13. Again in his prophecy (Isa. 9:6, 7) Isaiah calls Him "The mighty God," and in Isaiah 7:14 He is named "Imman- uel," which means "God is with us." See also Matthew 1:23. In Hebrews 1:5-8 the Father addresses Him as God. Paul calls Him "great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" in Titus 2:13. Stephen calls upon God saying, "Lord Jesus" (Acts 7:59, 60). John, in writing his Gospel under inspi ration says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (that is, divine, for a noun without an article expresses quality]" (John 1:1). "And the Word was made

flesh, and dwelt among us" (verse 14). Thus the continued and multiplied testi mony of the writers of Scripture is that Jesus is of a verity God. "As ye have there fore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiv ing. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradi tion of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Col. 2:6-9).

That Jesus is God from eternity is fur ther emphasized in the .Scripture, leaving us without a question of doubt. Listen to Micah in prophetic vision tell of Him who was to be born in Bethlehem: "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of

thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2). The margin reads "the days

of eternity." Then note the words of Isaiah as previously referred to in the ninth chap ter and verses six and seven, where he gives to Jesus the extraordinary name "The everlasting Father" (literally, the Father of eternity), thus again emphasizing the unity and inexplicable equality of the God head.

This oneness of the Trinity and full di vinity of Christ is further emphasized in 1 Timothy 6:14-16, where He is called "the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords." He contains that which all the Godhead contains, and so does each of the others, but He is sent to represent God to man. Thus He has a unique position. This unity of the Godhead is perfect and complete, past even full hu man comprehension. "In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Col. 2:9).

But although Christ's divine glory was for a time vailed and eclipsed by His assuming human ity, yet He did not cease to be God when He be came man. The human did not take the place of the divine, nor the divine of the human. This is the mystery of godliness. The two expressions human and divine were, in Christ, closely and inseparably one, and yet they had a distinct individuality. Though Christ humbled Himself to become man, the Godhead was still His own. Signs of the Times, May 10, 1899.

And so Christ's glorious divinity was veiled while He took on the form of hu manity. This Divine Being in His original unveiled form, as the Mighty God from eternity, no man has seen, as no man has seen the Father. Note here again the di vine unity, so perfect that our finite minds can barely grasp a minute portion. How glorious is God! We reach upward to com prehend His greatness, and we press on to attain to His likeness. That we cannot fully comprehend God and His perfection is the greatest evidence of God.

(To be concluded)

NOBLE DEEDS-

<£ To do an evil act is base. To do a good one without incurring danger is common enough. But it is the part of a good man to do great and noble deeds though he risks everything in doing them.—Plutarch.

18 THE MINISTRY

Review of Basic Principles in Approaching Non-AdventistsPART II-The Right Approach

ARNOLD KURTZMinister, East Oakland Church, Oakland, California

I N THE story of the Trans figuration the climaxing

sentence reads, "And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only." Those two words, "Jesus only," provide the an swer. Those two words are

symbolic of the spirit that actuated the early church, and are a prophetic symbol of the spirit of the last-day church. We are told in The Acts of the Apostles, page 64, "'Jesus only' in these words is contained the secret of the life and power that marked the history of the early church." They had a similar message to ours, but through those two words every doctrine was channeled. It is not to be Jesus plus doctrine or an in troduction to doctrine, or the appeal in doctrine, but every doctrine clustering around Him. We present the Sabbath only that we might exalt the lovely Lord of the Lord's day. All our doctrines must be Christ centered.

We are told that "Christ made plain the right way of approaching the people." Often in our way doctrine is important, fel lowship is minimized. In Christ's way both are important. It is our responsibility to teach our people how to greet the stranger at the door. That is as important as doc trine. Fellowship! How to reach over and warmly and sincerely shake hands with the stranger. The Sabbath school teacher will take time to introduce the visitor in his class.

A minister preached a sermon on "Will We Know Our Friends in Heaven?" A man wrote a note saying, "Please preach a ser mon on recognizing our friends on earth. I have been here six months and no one has spoken to me."

For lack of a better name we labeled an other principle "the law of soil prepara tion," which demands that before doc trinal seed is sown, the soil of the heart must be prepared. We build this on the

JUNE, 1961

parable of the Seed Sower. The kingdom was to be established not by force of arms but by the implantation of a new principle in the hearts of men. Christ came as a sower of seed, not as a military champion of force. Those who wish to force their re ligion on people, employing the "ram-it, jam-it, cram-it" method, do violence to the kingdom. This is not God's way. They do violence to the divinely ordained laws of soul winning. We try to show our people that the heart must be opened before we present doctrinal truths. We have seen the disappointment of new members when they come into the church believing everybody will accept these new truths. They want to unload it all quickly and they are dis appointed because their friends don't re spond. The hearts were unprepared. Our people often make this mistake.

One woman got up at one of the services and said, "I love to give the message. I saw a man on the street the other day, and I told him about the Sabbath and about Ar mageddon and the seven last plagues." She said, "I would not let him get away." But he did get away. He was not ready for all of that. All through the Bible we are taught that men's hearts must be opened to receive the truth. How shall their hearts be opened? I mention three things. To my people I say that we must learn to really testify of Jesus. We need to return to the joyous testifying of what Christ really means to us. Christ crucified talk it, pray it, sing it. It will break and win men's hearts! Then we must display the spirit of Christ. Many times in our own homes we are guilty of scarring hearts instead of keep ing them open. Here is a wife with a non- Adventist husband. He brings home some pork. "If you are going to eat that stuff, you will have to cook it yourself." Does this open or close the heart? You know that we are scarring hearts many times with our ap proach sometimes of those nearest and dearest to us.

19

Here is a woman with a Methodist neigh bor. She knows there are Christians in ev ery communion, but she somehow has the idea that this particular Methodist must join her church to be saved; and she says in her most pious way and as kindly as she can, "You are in the wrong church." What will happen to that Methodist heart? The same thing that would happen to an Ad- ventist heart with such an approach.

We suggest that we must keep in the foot steps of Jesus who went about doing good. We want a program of good-neighbor evangelism. If we could get every family in the Adventist Church to say, "We are going to cultivate the friendship of as many of our neighbors as we can and do as much good as we can" (take them a cherry pie, a loaf of bread, stay with the children, et cetera), these families would be placed un-

The shortest and surest way to live with honor in the world is to be in reality what we would ap pear to be.—Socrates.

der a certain obligation, and when the pastor announces a series of meetings they would come. We would not have to have expensive campaigns. They would come to the church, and they would pack the church. We explain the importance of Isaiah 58. That chapter is for the people of the Sabbath-reform message, but the important passage is verses 5-8 where our real work is outlined. We are to unloose the heavy burdens, clothe the naked, and feed the hungry. Good-neighbor evangelism!

After the soil of the heart has been opened we are ready to plant doctrinal seed, but it is important for us to remem ber that this doctrinal seed must find lodg ing in the heart. There are many who have it only in the head, but it has never really gotten into the heart. We are told in The Desire of Ages, page 309, "In all human ex perience a theoretical knowledge of the truth has been proved to be insufficient for the saving of the soul."

The following is an illustration of truth in the heart and truth in the head. If I were to present statistics today on the num ber of houses that burn annually because of faulty flues and were to tell you the amount of money that is lost, the lives lost, and so on, those facts would be lodged in your mind. But if I were to say that there is a house burning right now, and say that it is

20

your house, the announcement would in stantly reach your heart and you would be motivated to action. When truth gets into the heart and touches the. emotions, the feelings, the wellsprings of desire, it begins to become saving truth. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to transfer from the mind to the heart what was only information; to transform what was once dry theory into living, vital truth. This provides opportu nity to present the importance of the work of the Holy Spirit in gaining decisions and to show our people where their work ends and where the Spirit takes over. Many are trying to do what only the Holy Spirit is able to do.

The fundamental law of the government of God is love. Closely associated with this is the gift of choice. God will not and can not compel anybody because of that very law. He says: "Choose you this day whom ye will serve." Shall I presume to do what God chooses not to do, what Christ will not do, what the Holy Spirit does not do? He brings to conviction, but it is the person who makes the choice. Well, you say, that law is self-evident; but sometimes we break that law. A wife had this problem: her hus band's family wanted to hold a family re union, and it was to fall on the Sabbath. He felt clear in attending, but she didn't. She felt she should go to church. She came to the minister very much agitated and ex plained about the family reunion. The minister asked, "Are you going?" She re plied, "No, but my husband is." "Well, let him go." "But he would be sinning," the woman remonstrated. "Doesn't he have a right to sin if he wants to?" the minister asked. She had not thought of that. "But he will be lost." "Doesn't he have a right to be lost if he wants to?" She had not thought of that either. God could have stopped Adam and Eve from disobeying back there, but He would not violate this principle of

(Continued on page 38}

NOTEWe regret that the following two names were

omitted from the Southern New England Confer ence list of ordinations in previous issues of The Ministry:1959—R. Lembert Chaney, pastor, 57 Dunning

Boulevard, Bangor, Maine.1960—Beaman T. Senecal, Jr., 54 Dale Street,

Keene, New Hampshire.

THE MINISTRY

EVANGELISM-Winning Men for God

From TV Screen to Harvest Concluded

The Decision Films

THE DECISION films are a final link in the It Is Written plan of evangelism. Designed

primarily to follow up interests created by the television program, they are planned to bring to any group, large or small, the atmosphere of an actual reaping meeting. Their purpose is to create decision consciousness that will lead directly to final and full commitment to truth.

The It Is Written television series, if it is to be effective must be followed up. Interested persons need to be gathered into groups and led to take the final steps along the path to decision. It is only natural that such leadership should be undertaken by Elder Vandeman, for he is the personality who has entered the homes week by week on the screen. He is the one in whom they now have a measure of confidence. Any other man attempting to follow up the inter est, regardless of his talents and power as a public speaker and soul winner, has the disad vantage of not being, known to the people.

Now it is not necessary for Elder Vandeman to follow up the interest personally in every area. We believe that in the production of these color films we actually have a double advantage. They present the personality in whom the peo ple already have confidence and who is there fore best qualified to appeal to their hearts, while at the same time drawing them into close fellowship with the local pastor so he will be able to personally lead them not only to full decision but into church membership.

Surprising as it may seem, reaction to these films is in some cases more favorable than to a public appearance, since the impact of a close- up picture on a large screen is comparable to the impact of TV in the home. Some have ex pressed disappointment at the great distance between the speaker and the audience. They are accustomed to the intimacy of TV. This decision-film plan capitalizes on that intimacy.

But the decision films do not and cannot

JUNE,1961

stand alone. They are a part of a plan. That plan envisions and requires a careful Bible study preceding each film. That Bible study may be given by the pastor, Bible instructor, or other qualified person.

The reason for this is clear, and it is twofold. To put on film an actual reaping meeting as conducted by Elder Vandeman in the large cities, including special music, the message with the full-text background, and the appeal, would require the production of a film from an hour to an hour and a half in length. This would not be possible expensewise, nor would it be practical, for it would utterly fail in bringing about the personal fellowship with the local pastor, which is imperative. Therefore each de cision-film service consists of a Bible study given by the local representative and followed by Elder Vandeman's personal appeal on film.

What They Are Not

These films are not an emergency fill-in. Never under any circumstances should they be used to fill an emergency when a pastor fails to prepare a prayer meeting or when an MV speaker fails to show up. These films are not entertainment. They are not a program. They are participation films, involving the actual re sponse of individuals to appeals and altar calls. Never should they be used except when such participation is envisioned.

They are not an evangelistic spearhead, not primarily a presentation for first-nighters. They should not be used to excite or initiate an in terest. Rather, they should be used in decisive, final meetings with men and women who have had considerable exposure to the message by way of It Is Written, the Voice of Prophecy, Faith for Today, evangelistic efforts, Bible stud ies, Bible courses, Take His Word, or extensive reading of our literature. Relatives of Seventh- day Adventists and backsliders might be invited.

21

Where and When to Use Them

The decision film plan may be used in audi toriums, halls, churches, homes wherever groups of interested persons, ready to make a decision, can be gathered together. We think first, naturally, of the larger groups where the local evangelist or pastor can reap a harvest.

And though these films will be most effec tively used where Elder Vandeman is known by the telecast, it is amazing how helpful they can be in any decision or reaping series. They do not necessarily have to follow the It Is Writ ten television films. After all, Elder Vandeman brings the principles, and messages that have been tested in the crucible of the fires of evan gelism in many parts of the world, and his ex perience has been molded by contact with some of our greatest soul winners.

The emphasis, however, should not be placed alone upon widely advertised public meetings, important as they are. It is true that the larger meetings draw more people to each single show ing, and thus save wear on the films. But still larger success can be had if wise planning is laid to use the films in decision Bible studies in the homes, with small groups of people or fam ilies who may not be able or willing to come out to a meeting.

Keep in mind that television interests have not been created through public meetings. They have been created and nurtured by a device in the home, where men and women sit and lounge in the informal atmosphere of the living room. Such persons might even come more quickly to a Sabbath morning service, just to see what it is like, than to an evangelistic meet ing. Their prejudice may now be broken down. But remember that their interest, however wholesome, may not yet be so deep as to inspire the slightest desire to change churches. And knowing that we are Seventh-day Adventists may make them a little reserved about attend ing any service that seems to be evangelistic in nature.

But in personal visitation it is possible to share the word regarding these new films in a way that will excite curiosity and genuine de-' sire to see one of them. And when they have seen the first one, they will likely want to carry on with the plan. Invite them to the meeting place. Arrange transportation if needed. But if

they do not react favorably to the suggestion of a public meeting, arrange to show the films in their own home or the home of friends.

In other words, all your reaping eggs should not be put in one basket. You need not depend upon the auditorium alone or the homes alone. Schedule the film plan nightly. Use them in a hall one night a week, and schedule them in the homes the other nights. Work the plan to the limit, and you will be amazed at the results.

Not only ministers and Bible instructors will find this combination plan effective. In addition to this primary use, doctors and other profes sional people among our capable laymen can extend the influence of the films. But they too must precede each film with the proper Bible study. Only in that way can the maximum re sults be realized.

Outlines of the studies to be used with the films, as well as work sheets on which the people write in the texts, are available from the Gen eral Conference It Is Written office.

Preparation for a Decision-Film Series

1. The church must be praying. "Only the work accomplished with much prayer, and sanc tified by the merit of Christ, will in the end prove to have been efficient for good." The Desire of Ages, p. 362.

2. Advertise. An advertising folder has been prepared that may be adapted to the needs of

' large or small groups. The newspaper might be used. TV can effectively be used for ad vertising these meetings. Correspond with your area It Is Written office for counsel on this. But personal visitation of all available interests is the most effective advertising of all. There is no substitute for this means of gathering peo ple together.

3. Thoroughly study your Bible presentation. It must be enthusiastic, earnest, and filled with conviction. Prepare for it. Know it well. If preparation is fresh and thorough, with up-to- the-minute illustrations and renewed convic tion in your own heart regarding the truth you teach, then your presentation will be brief, pointed, and powerful. Do not preach, how ever. Teach. Let the people participate. They are to fill in the texts. They are to take notes. Plan to let them use their Bibles. Every success ful soul winner knows that if these few pointed

CAPABILITY

<L Men are often capable of greater things than they perform. They are sent into the world with bills of credit, and seldom draw to their full extent.—Horace Walpole.

22 THE MINISTRY

suggestions are followed, the people will be en thralled by your study and will love you for it. It is in this way that you will endear yourself to the hearts o£ the people. They will never forget your studies and their participation in them.

4. Preview the film to be shown, if you have not previously seen it. It will help you to know what to expect.

5. Make sure that the projectionist is thor oughly familiar with his machine and its thread ing devices. The finest film prepared at tre mendous cost can lose its effectiveness and ac complish little or nothing unless slavish atten tion is given to a few simple precautions. The room should be thoroughly darkened, with no light to distract. A good projector should be used, with sound properly adjusted and sharp focus achieved. The gate should have been thoroughly cleaned to remove lint. The machine should be properly threaded so as to synchro nize the lips of the speaker with the sound. The screen should be adequately large for the audience.

A Typical Decision-Film Meeting

It is suggested that there be no song service. There need be no special music. In other words, it may be best that this meeting bear little resemblance to the traditional evangelistic service as such. If the meeting is conducted in the traditional way, the people will expect a sermon. And a sermon in this particular setting will not so effectively teach the people what is needed for final decision.

Rather, have organ music or use taped organ melodies of a gospel nature while the people are gathering. Follow with one familiar hymn and an earnest prayer. An offering may be taken, or the routine might be varied by asking folks to place gifts on the plate as they leave the meeting place. In order to break away from the traditional meeting type and prepare the heart for earnest and deep personal study, it might be wise to try some of these innovations.

Then get into the Bible study in earnest. Your study should be no longer than twenty- five or thirty minutes. Thorough preparation and deep conviction regarding the message will help you to say it briefly and well.

And now ask everyone to tuck away their work sheets and quietly relax as Pastor Vande- man reviews what they have learned and brings his part o£ the evening message.

At the close it may not be wise to turn the lights on at once. A few quiet words from you at this point, re-enforcing the decision, some times all joining in prayer, will mean much.

JUXE,1961

Keeping the sacred, quiet moments intact is an art God will help each man to achieve. If no complete call is made, dismiss the meeting. Shake all hands. Talk quietly and earnestly with all who desire to do so. Let the people leave without social chatting, especially if the meeting is in a home.

On full decision nights linger, pray, and talk with everyone. But better still, make sure that you visit those homes in the next day or so to further consolidate the decision.

How to Encourage Response

The purpose of these films shown in connec tion with a persona], live Bible study is to cre ate decision consciousness. Full decision to give one's heart to Christ and to join the church does not come alone by asking for hands to be raised or for something to be written or even by making an altar call, however important these physical commitments may be. It is rather the total impact of a decisive Bible study and a conviction-filled message that creates the atmos phere of decision. Even then a physical act of commitment may need encouragement.

Right here is the crux of the matter. The im pact of the films will be seriously dissipated if they are treated as something simply to be watched. The aim is to achieve the atmosphere and the results of a live appeal. The films in vite participation. Unless that participation is gained, they might better not be shown. But the people will need encouragement.

Therefore it is suggested that previous to the meetings, perhaps in the Sabbath service, never in the decision meeting, you talk quietly with our own people and solicit their support. Ask them to be the first to respond to the calls that are made. If they lead the way, others will find it easy to follow. Encourage our people to re spond to every appeal that they can legitimately find it in their hearts to respond to.

For instance, if hands are asked for indicat ing a desire to prepare for the kingdom, all can join. And their response will encourage the more timid. Even the altar call for conversion may be the very thing needed by some of our own people. A forward move at that time may encourage and release the floodgates of decision for others.

When the films are shown in a home, some adapting of the plan will be needed. People will not come forward to the altar in a home. But God will help you to adapt. You may want them to quietly stand or step forward, perhaps pressing into a circle. A simple gesture from you at the right point will indicate what you

{Continued on page 31}

23

Dr. A. A. Esteb addressing those who attended the Youth Bible Conference.

Youth Bible Study ConferenceD. A. ROTH

Public Relations and Radio-TV Secretary. Columbia Union Conference

EI

ARLY in March 350 seri ous-minded young people

of the Columbia Union Con ference took part in the first event of its kind ever held in the United States and Canada a Youth Bible Study Con ference.

Sponsored by the youth department of the Columbia Union Conference and the Sligo church MV Society in Takoma Park, Maryland, the three-day conference brought together delegates from seven Eastern States and the District of Colum bia. It was a "closed" conference, which meant that only delegates between the ages of 16 and 30 were permitted to attend the study groups.

The main purpose of the conference was to study the Bible. There were no enter taining features, no unusual performers. The only possible exception to this was a unique display of old Bibles put on by a layman, George B. Suhrie, of Paterson,

24

New Jersey, who has spent a lifetime with his unusual hobby.

As E. M. Peterson, Columbia Union MV secretary, William Loveless, youth leader of the Sligo church, and study conference committees met together to plan the week end event, it was decided that deep Bible subjects be presented so that young people might be challenged to further Bible study when they returned home.

The result of their decision can be seen in the line-up of subjects that were pre sented: "Last-Day Events," "The Sabbath," "What Is God?" "Significance of the Church," "Conditionality of Man," "Evo lution and Creation," "The Incarnation of Christ," and "The Spirit of Prophecy."

Leading theologians of the denomina tion were invited to direct in the study groups. The list included Edward Heppen- stall, Roland Loasby, and R. M. Ritland, all from Andrews University, Michigan; Herbert Douglass, from the Bible de partment of Atlantic Union College, Massa-

THE MIMSTRY

chusetts; G. H. Minchin, of the Bible de partment of Columbia Union College; Don Neufeld, a research editor of the Review and Herald Publishing Association; Rich ard Hammill and D. Arthur Delafield from the General Conference.

The plan of the conference was simple. Eight different study groups were con ducted simultaneously. Each instructor made a four-hour presentation of his sub ject. At the end of this four-hour period he repeated his presentation to a second group of students. In the course of the conference each delegate was able to study two complete subjects. The class size aver aged around forty.

Formal presentations were given by the class instructors. However, a major portion of the time in most of the classes was spent in asking and answering questions and in discussion of various aspects of the subject at hand.

The Bible study groups were organized Friday night and met for study and discus sion Sabbath afternoon, Saturday night, and Sunday morning. In addition, three general meetings were held. The first one was the opening session when the keynote speaker was Edward Heppenstall, much- loved Bible teacher and theologian.

More than 2,400 persons attended the Sabbath morning service in the Sligo church when Herbert Douglass spoke on

(Continued on page 31}

SOME COMMENTS"I was impressed with the maturity o£ the questions asked by our youth, which indicates that they think more seriously on religious themes than we realize."— Dr. Richard Hammill, General Confer

ence Department o£ Education.<^^S

"This Bible Conference exceeded our ex pectations. Our youth are hungry for the truths of God's Word, and their earnest ness in attention and discussion was in spiring."—E. M. Peterson, Columbia Un ion Missionary Volunteer Department.

<^^S"It was thrilling to see how these young people came to every meeting on time. I am convinced that our youth want and can understand the 'meat' of the Word." —William Loveless, Pastor, Sligo Church.

C_><7>

"Those young people just fell for thesestudies in the biggest kind of way."—Dr. R. E. Loasby, Theological Seminary,

Andrews University.<^>^>

"Our young men and women entered wholeheartedly into these studies, which goes to show how important the study of the Bible is in the life of our youth."— G. H. Minchin, Columbia Union College

Bible Department.

JUNE, 1961

These young people helped in the planning of the conference.

25

When Will Isaiah 11:6-9 Be Fulfilled?A. V. OLSON

President, Ellen G. White Estate, Incorporated

FROM time to time we re ceive letters asking when

and where the conditions de scribed in Isaiah and in the Testimonies will meet their fulfillment.

These inspired passages read as follows:

The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the falling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea (Isa. 11:6-9) .

With Jesus at our head, we all descended from the city down to this earth, on a great and mighty mountain, which could not bear Jesus up, and it parted asunder, and there was a mighty plain. Then we looked up and saw the great city, with twelve foundations, and twelve gates, three on each side, and an angel at each gate. We all cried out, "The city, the great city, it's coming, it's com ing down from God out of heaven," and it came and settled on the place where we stood. Then we began to look at the glorious things outside of the city. There I saw most beautiful houses, that had the appearance of silver, supported by four pillars set with pearls, most glorious to behold, which were to be inhabited by the saints, and in which was a golden shelf. I saw many of the saints go into the houses, take off their glittering crowns and lay them on the shelf, then go out into the field by the houses to do something with the earth. . . .

Next I saw a field of tall grass, most glorious to behold; it was living green, and had a reflection of silver and gold, as it waved proudly to the glory of King Jesus. Then we entered a field full of all kinds of beasts the lion, the lamb, the leopard, and the wolf, all together in perfect union. We passed through the midst of them, and they fol lowed on peaceably after. . . .

As we were traveling along, we met a company who were also gazing at the glories of the place. I noticed red as a border on their garments; their crowns were brilliant; their robes were pure white. As we greeted them, I asked Jesus who they were.

He said they were martyrs that had been slain for Him. With them was an innumerable company of little ones; they had a hem of red on their gar ments also. Mount Zion was just before us, and on the mount was a glorious temple, and about it were seven other mountains, on which grew roses and lilies. And I saw the little ones climb, or, if they chose, use their little wings and fly to the top of the mountains, and pluck the never-fading flowers. Testimonies, vol. 1, pp. 67-69.

The questioners who write to us regard ing these inspired passages wish to know whether the time of peace and tranquillity here described comes before, during, or after the millennium. It cannot be prior to the coming of Christ just before the mil lennium, for the period immediately pre ceding the second advent of Christ is de scribed in the Bible as a time of utter tur moil, strife, and confusion a time spoken of by Daniel as "a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time" (Dan. 12:1), a time when, as declared by Jesus, "men's hearts [will be] failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth" (Luke 21:26). Neither can it be during the millennium, for then the earth will be empty and void, the righteous hav ing been taken to heaven and the wicked having been left behind, dead. Therefore, it must be after the close of the millennium.

The next question is "Will the glorious picture painted by the prophet in Isaiah 11:6-9, and by Ellen G. White in Testi monies, volume one, pages 67-69, meet its fulfillment in heaven or on earth?" It must be that this prophecy will be fulfilled here on earth, for in closing his description of the harmony and safety reigning on the Lord's "holy mountain," Isaiah explains the peace and security of the place in the following words: "for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord" (Isa. ll'.9). The authors of The Seventh-day Ad- ventist Bible Commentary also apply the prophecy of Isaiah 11:6-9 to the new earth state (see vol. 4, p. 159). Moreover, in the beginning of her description Sister White tells how the saints first come down

THE MINISTRY

from heaven to this earth with the Holy City and afterward go out of it into the surrounding fields, and at the bottom of page 67 of Testimonies, volume one the page on which Sister White begins the de scription in question is a footnote that says, "This vision describes events to take place at the close of the one thousand years after Christ's second advent. Revela tion 20; 21; 22; Zechariah 14:4."

It is evident, then, that the events fore told in the above-quoted prophecies are to meet their fulfillment in the earth made new after the close of the one thousand years following the second advent of Christ.

This self-evident fact throws the minds of some people into perplexity as they try to understand how there can be little chil dren in the new earth after the lapse of one thousand years spent in heaven by the redeemed. These people ask, "Can it be that children will be born in heaven?"

Some people, we know, maintain that children will be born in the earth made new. But this is a mistaken notion. There will be no marriages or births in that land. Jesus Himself made this clear when He said, "Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven" (Mark 12:24, 25). And through His inspired servant the Lord tells us:

There are men to-day who express their belief that there will be marriages and births in the new earth, but those who believe the Scriptures can not accept such doctrines. The doctrine that chil dren will be born in the new earth is not a part of the "sure word of prophecy." The words of Christ are too plain to be misunderstood. They should forever settle the question of marriages and births in the new earth. Neither those who shall be raised from the dead, nor those who shall be translated without seeing death, will marry or be given in marriage. They will be as the angels of God, mem bers of the royal family. Medical Ministry., pp. 99, 100.

"How then," it is asked, "can there be little children in the new earth? Will not all the children who were taken to heaven at the second coming of Christ be at least one thousand years old by the time they come into the new earth?" In point of time, yes. But reckoned in terms of eternity, a thousand years are but as a day (see 2 Peter 3:8; Ps. 90:4), and from the evi dence before us, it would seem that the chil dren taken to heaven with all the redeemed

JUNE, 1961

when Jesus comes will not grow out of their childhood into mature men and women until after they enter the new earth.

This conclusion seems to have good scrip tural support, for after announcing the fi nal destruction of the wicked which will take place at the end of the millennium (Rev. 20:7-9) and after declaring that the wicked will be consumed by a fire that "shall leave them neither root nor branch" (Mal. 4:1), the prophet Malachi says, "But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall" (verse 2). (See The Great Controversy, page 645.)

According to the text just cited, the growing-up process is to take place after the wicked, at the close of the millennium, have been reduced to ashes and the earth has been made new.

In view of the previously mentioned facts, it would seem reasonable to con clude that the conditions described in the two prophetic utterances listed at the be ginning of this statement apply to the new- earth state, after the close of the millen nium.

ANNOUNCING

For September, 1961

A GRADUATE PROGRAMLEADING TO A

MASTER OF SCIENCE DEGREEIN HEALTH EDUCATION

offered through

The School of Graduate Studies College of Medical Evangelists

Ministers and teachers are amongthose whose background qualifies

them for this work.

For information regarding prerequisites

write to:

Chairman, Graduate CommitteeDivision of Public Health and Tropical

MedicineCollege of Medical Evangelists Lorna Linda, California

PASTOR - Shepherding the Flock

On Being a PreacherCARLYLE B. HAYNES

Former Secretary, General Conference, War Service Commission

[Those who were acquainted with the late C. B. Haynes will hear his ringing voice with no uncertain emphasis on the^ subject dearest to his heart preaching. The following article is part of an address he delivered to a group of preach ers in 1956 and published that year in the July issue of THE MINISTRY. It is reprinted by request of a reader who deplores the multiplicity of business that crowds out the sermon from many pulpits. EDITORS.]

THE field of preaching is a very large one, and one could range far and wide

over its vast area. It is not in my mind to do that. Rather, I propose to limit myself to a very few, but very important, consid erations in connection with the work that our ministers are doing or the work they are supposed to be doing.

I am among those old-fashioned people who hold the conviction that the chief work of the preacher is to preach not to gather funds, to raise goals, to lead drives, to spark campaigns, to promote projects, to be an entertainer, to show pictures and films, to curry favor with his leaders, or to seek promotion for himself but to preach!

Mind you, I say preaching should be his chief business, the thing that he is doing or preparing to do most of his time. These other things that have been mentioned may be auxiliaries to his preaching, but they are to be secondary, not permitted to crowd into the first place. Preaching is to be his great work, his chief work, his lifework. Other things of lesser consequence may follow after, but preaching must be para mount.

"Go Preach"

It must be remembered and always kept in mind that the great commission we re ceived from our divine Master is "Go ye into all the world, and preach." The com mission contains nothing bidding us to go into all the world and raise money or con duct campaigns or raise goals or promote this, that, and the other thing. There is

28

nothing in it, either, I should remark, tell ing us to go into all the world and become counselors, qualified to apply the princi ples of psychology and psychiatry to the problems of men. There is only one Nor man Vincent Peale, and it is not a part of our calling to attempt to imitate him. One such is quite enough. Our business is to "go . . . preach." Let us be about our business.

I beg you not to misunderstand me. I have no disposition to minimize or dis count the importance of any or all of these other things that have been mentioned. What I have in mind is to emphasize the chief importance and imperative necessity of preaching, and to point out its deplorable neglect in these days, and the substitution for it of things of much lesser consequence. What I would do is to encourage you to put the things you are expected to do into their relative positions of importance, plac ing first things first, where they belong, and to become really good preachers, effective preachers, convincing preachers, not allow ing anything of lesser consequence to take the place of preaching.

Sabbath Is for Worship—Not Promotion

I feel I should repeat that I am making no appeal for any abatement in our pro motional program, or for the abandon ment of goals, campaigns, and drives. What I would have you consider is whether it is not right and necessary to safeguard the Sabbath morning hour of worship for wor ship, for the Bible, for preaching. To me it seems imperative that the Bible and preaching should be restored to their right ful places of centrality in the hour of Sab bath worship.

This need not mean that our promo tional efforts should be curtailed or weak-

THE MINISTRY

ened. It means merely that they should be carried on in a different way and at differ ent times, and not permitted to usurp the place of the Bible and of preaching. In deed, I hold a profound conviction that when the Bible and preaching are restored to their rightful places in the activities of our churches, our promotional activities will at once become easier, more efficient, and surprisingly more fruitful.

This is not mere theory. I saw it demon strated and proved on one occasion. It was in one of our large city churches with a membership between five and six hundred. The pastor had become deeply concerned because the number of special days and special programs and special promotions left him with very few Sabbaths when the Bible and preaching could be given the chief place in the Sabbath morning serv ice. He took the matter to the church board for discussion. They met on several occasions, studied the church program and needs from every viewpoint, gave consid eration to the methods other than Sabbath promotion by which their church needs and denominational goals for home and foreign missions might be raised, and fi nally came to a positive decision.

That decision was that the Sabbath morning service of worship should be used only for purposes of worship, preaching, and Bible study, and no intrusion of other things should be permitted. The board pledged itself to support the pastor in maintaining such a program. There was to be no promotion activity on the Sabbath, no solicitation of funds, no appeals for church expense, church school expense, janitor, heat, or anything else; no solicita tion for Ingathering or Week of Sacrifice or foreign missions. All these interests would be taken care of in other ways than formerly, and at other times than on the Sabbath.

All Goals Met and Bettered

The year before this program went into effect the tithe of this church amounted to 827,000; the year after, to $72,000. The year before, foreign missions giving amounted to $4,700; the year after, to $17,- 000. The year before, home missions giving that is, all items for church and church school expense amounted to $8,600; the year after, to $35,000. And every periodical and magazine subscription total of the year before was exceeded. The most important

JUNE, 1961

development, however, was that the spir itual life and activity of the whole mem bership, their soul-winning activities were raised immeasurably.

I think I need not add that getting this program started brought its difficulties and misunderstandings. When department sec retaries local, union, or General Confer ence were to have the Sabbath morning service and were told of the vote of the board, that only a sermon was expected a good, spiritual sermon, with no promo tion or solicitation some of them expressed dismay. And dismay was not the only thing they expressed.

The church liked the new program and prospered greatly as it was carried out, and without bringing any injury to the regular goals and campaigns of the church. When God's people are fed with the bread of life, and nourished with the Word of God, and built up by spiritual preaching, they will come behind in nothing needful to the welfare of God's cause.

What Is a Sermon?

You will not fail to recognize that if preaching is restored to its rightful place, and engaged in regularly, a great deal more attention and time will need to be given to the construction of sermons than is notice able today. And certainly that will not be something to be regretted. Our preaching has fallen to a rather sorry level, and it is putting it very mildly to say that we could do with something better. It has come to the place that a compilation of quotations from the Spirit of Prophecy, with few con necting remarks to link them together, is looked upon as a sermon. It is not a sermon. It is only deplorable evidence of the speak er's inability to do any thinking of his own.

Now do not misunderstand me. I have a wholehearted belief in the Spirit of Proph ecy, and most certainly believe in its proper use. But I do not believe it is properly used when selections typed out on cards are read one after another in lieu of a sermon, in order to save the worker from doing any brainwork of his own.

If a man is to be a preacher, he must not look on the making of a sermon as a trivial business. It is rather big business the big gest, most massive, most sublime business any man can engage in. It should be given the very best ability that a man has. It is not accomplished by the easy gathering and compiling of a few or many quotations,

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whether from the Spirit of Prophecy, from the newspaper, from books, or even from the Bible itself. As Bishop Quayle, in his Pastor-Preacher, says:

"I have seen some men preaching who appeared to me to be clerks in a poor store. They were very busy; but they had no goods. They sifted the newspapers to disclose a Sunday theme. They were eager with a childish eagerness to have something to say, but when they spoke they had noth ing to say which, if left unsaid, had left a new heart-break in the world." And he adds: "If I left this sermon unsaid, what loss would ensue? Put that sharp sword at every sermon's throat and see how the ser mon fares."

It is not necessary that a preacher be a great man. It is necessary that every preacher recognize that he is engaged in a great business, that he is to preach great matters. The thing that brought us into this business of preaching was not, I am sure, the lure of wages or leisure or pres tige. We did not enter this work to gain a name for ourselves. Rather, it was the lure of things to be done that if left undone would leave the world a wreck along the shores of time. If this gospel we are preach ing if our preaching of it be not utterly necessary, then it is utterly unnecessary. There is no halfway permission or commis sion in our heavenly calling. Man is lost, and we are in the business, with God, of saving him. And unless a preacher feels the utter necessity of preaching, he must not preach. If a man does not look upon his mission as supremely great, that man is not big enough to preach. Unless a man's min istry is to himself momentous, he himself is trivial. More, his preaching is trivial.

Huckster—or Preacher?

So I put it to you, preachers. How do you look upon your work? Is it sublime or trivial? If to you it is not sublime, you have missed your calling. You are bound to fum ble a task whose magnitude you can nei ther appreciate nor approximate. Men so little as to think the gospel of the great God a lean and trivial thing must not un dertake to preach it.

I have left many things unsaid that should be said, that time has not permitted to be said. The making of sermons should be emphasized. The matter of prayer should be discussed. The supreme need of the Holy Spirit, the one thing of greatest

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importance, should not be omitted. It would be well to study the most efficient method of organizing the church to raise all its goals, reach all its objectives, and care for all its needs. I urge you to think through these matters by yourselves.

I leave these thoughts with you. Two ways are open before you, and I would have you look at and consider both. You can be a beggar, a huckster, an auctioneer or you can be a preacher. The great need of this cause is preachers. God help you to be a preacher!

The Hour of God's Judgment Is Come

(Continued from page 13}

were opened." There was a time when those thrones of judgment were not placed, when the books were not opened, when they were not in use for this purpose of judgment. In the sequence of the events of this chapter there is a time when this judgment would begin. If there is any im portance to the sequence of the four beasts, the ten kingdoms, and the little horn if one nation is to follow the one previously mentioned then it follows that this great judgment scene in heaven must follow the period of papal supremacy. If each of these events in the chapter are events in time, then so is the judgment.

The nature of this judgment embraces judgment upon the little horn, but it also is judgment in favor of the saints. The work of judgment is pictured as taking place in the heavenly sanctuary and is concerned not with a limited aspect but with the total picture as it brings to a climax the great controversy. The ultimate issue is the tri umph of God, the utter discomfiture of the enemies of God, the decision by this heav enly assize against the powers of darkness and in favor of the saints of God.

The purpose of this is described in verse 10 as a work of judgment, and in verse 14 as issuing in the establishment of dominion of Christ over all peoples and the ushering in of the kingdom of glory.

The very fact that reference is made to the opening of the books points to a con sideration in the judgment of carefully kept records. All this is necessary before Christ claims dominion and the kingdom from His Father. The central issue in this work of judgment is the establishment of Christ's sovereign rule over all the earth,

THE MINISTRY

the triumph of the saints, and the over throw of the kingdom of darkness.

Obviously, in such a work of judgment that decides in favor of the saints and es tablishes the dominion of Christ, both sides of the controversy are to be seen in proper perspective. It could not be otherwise. When the Bible speaks of the investigative judgment, it does not set them (the saints) forth in isolation; always they are seen within the perspective of the world conflict and the total judgment. Even the judgment that vindicates the very God of heaven is seen in this light. It is the re stricted concept that often throws the pic ture out of focus and gives ground for criti cism of our position. Once it is seen that there is a great heavenly assize convening in the heavenly sanctuary, and that this be gan shortly after the period of papal su premacy, it is imperative that we come to understand the nature of that judgment. The very fact that parallel pictures of this judgment are found in other chapters in Daniel and Revelation gives us every rea son to believe that this work of judgment, prior to the return of our Lord, is one of the most important aspects of the last mes sage to the world. That men should know and believe that this time in which we live is the supreme hour of God's judgment for all, is as essential as any vital truth revealed in the Bible. It is unfortunate that men like Walter Martin dismiss the possibility of a judgment now going on, because they have not yet grasped the total judgment picture the Seventh-day Adventists believe is found in the Bible. If these time proph ecies do not indicate that at the close of these periods there is to begin in heaven a great work of judgment not previously in function, then how does one explain all these references to the work of judgment and the heavenly sanctuary?

(To be continued)

Youth Bible Study Conference(Continued from page 25)

the subject "The Challenge of the Bible." The last group session was held late Sun

day morning at the conclusion of the Bible study groups. It was at this meeting that the reactions of the youth delegates were heard. A typical comment by a young person was, "This has been the most challenging and interesting event I have ever experienced."

JUNE, 1961

The Youth Bible Study Conference was a sincere effort on the part of youth leaders to direct the minds of young people today to the study of God's Word. It was in keep ing with the slogan for the MV Department of the denomination for the year 1961, "Spotlight on the Bible." It was also an appropriate follow-up program for the in spiring North American youth congress held last summer at Atlantic City, New Jersey, in the territory of the Columbia Union Conference.

It is hoped that the Takoma Park Bible study group for youth will prove to be the first in a long series of similar studies to be held in local conferences and in local churches throughout the North American Division.

From TV Screen to Harvest(Continued from page 23)

wish them to do. Such a gesture of invitation will also be important in a hall or a church.

Our own people will, of course, lead the way in filling in the texts on the work sheets, and in turning in the stubs from night to night. And they should share in whatever attendance awards are given.

What Could Happen

What could God do, with or without the films, if every man were to gather in all avail able television interests, with twenty or thirty or fifty interested people attending depend ing on the area and an equal number of our own people supporting him with their presence and prayers? What could happen if our men would stand before these people and answer their questions and talk to them informally, teaching the truth in a plain, simple way, com ing close to their hearts? What could happen if we really probed the depths of the reaping possibilities God has opened before us?

You know what would happen. The spirit of evangelism would grip the church and bless the minister's heart, and give him sheaves for his labor. This program of reaping would become what under God we believe it can be a new experience in Adventist evangelism. The results of such a program of total evangelism, saturated by a spirit of prayer in our churches, could only be measured in terms of the latter rain.

It is a long road from screen to harvest. But the Spirit of God can teach us how to shorten it. And every man of us can share in the results!

HEALTH EVANGELISM

"Ye Visited Me"MYRLE TABLER, R.N.

Washington Sanitarium and Hospital

JOB'S three friends were doing all right at the beginning. And their sick call might have

been more successful if they had continued along the same line. For the Sacred Record says, "They sat down with him . . . , and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great" (Job 2:13). Here they revealed sympathy and insight.

But when they began to propound their own ideas without any knowledge of his real situa tion they lost contact with the patient and be came "miserable comforters." Yet, words chosen with the sick one's need in view do have a power to heal. Many who have been visited by their minister or other Christian friends can testify to this.

Sickness, to many, is a deep river, the farther shore of which may not always be discernible to those who flounder in the depths. The real serv ice is not only to help the sufferer to keep his head above water but to gain the larger view point.

On our ward was a middle-aged woman who had recently lost her husband and who had difficulty in adjusting to her new life situation. After a few days it was apparent that she was regressing, and she soon reached the place where she remained in bed although there was no physical reason for this. She refused to eat or even to answer when spoken to. When I entered the room of this mentally ill person she gave no indication that she was even aware of my presence. I realized that in her with drawal from all human contact she had shut herself in a room that could hold only terror and loneliness. Sensing that just the presence of another person in the room might give some support, I sat in silence beside her for some time. Then I began very quietly:

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are

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many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

John 14:1-3

I followed this with

The Lord is my shepherd;I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters.

Psalm 23:1, 2

and on through the shepherd's psalm, follow ing with other and familiar passages. Although she made no sign that she had heard except a quick glance in my^direction when I began to speak, there was a visible relaxation to the tense body. Was it only a coincidence that she slept well that night, took food and medicine the next day, and continued to improve until her dismissal some days later?

Some patients will ask for spiritual support. Others do not recognize their own need. Yet it is there. Even those not of the Christian faith will often accept portions of the Scripture as great literature and find comfort in them. Al most all religions believe in a supreme being in whom in times of stress the suffering one may turn for comfort. Personally I have prayed with Jews, Moslems, Buddhists, and people of many other faiths.

Sometimes one must build an approach to the patient's mind out of such material as he furnishes, be it "wood, hay, stubble," and must recognize the building material in whatever form it appears.

"I don't want religion crammed down my throat while I'm here!" exclaimed a man hos pitalized for ulcers, when visited by a Christian worker.

THE MINISTRY

No doubt he thought he had built a barrier great and high to the subject. Actually he had just torn a hole in his fence that enabled his friend to get quickly over on his side. The tact ful visitor replied,

"I don't blame you at all! I wouldn't like that either. You must have had some bad ex periences to make you say that."

Eventually he told what they were. The rea son for his outburst had its roots in childhood where parents, although church members, showed little love or understanding to him. He was full of anxiety and guilt feelings, and these underlaid much of his unfavorable physical symptoms. By using the approach he furnished, the friend was able to lead the man to higher spiritual ground and to help the doctor bring him back to health.

I think Solomon may have been using stub ble for an approach when he said, "Vanity of vanities; all is vanity." He was using the com mon human experience of discouragement, for probably most people, especially when ill, have felt with Job

Wearisome nights are appointed to me.When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise,And the night be gone?And I am full of tossings to and froUnto the dawning of the day.My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of

dust. . . .My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, And are spent without hope. O remember that my life is wind: Mine eye shall no more see good.

Job 7:3-7

Yet there were better days ahead for Job, and Solomon's approach led him to splendid spirit ual heights "Fear God, and keep his com mandments: for this is the whole duty of man" (Eccl. 12:13).

Most people living in large cities have a dread of snow because of difficult driving conditions and traffic hazards but not the children. With sparkling eyes and glowing cheeks they face the stinging cold in order to enter into the treas ures of the snow. To help the sick to face the sting of pain and to find treasures in suffering is the privilege of the Christian visitor.

A young man, blinded while in the armed services, spent long months in an excellent army rehabilitation center where he was taught to live with his blindness; but it was a Christian visitor who gave him a spiritual goal that sent him back to finish college and then go on to the university.

"I'm glad I'm blind," he told me. "I found Christ in the darkness."

Evelyn, a missionary from Africa, showed much fortitude in spite of great suffering. She would get better and a relapse would occur. This happened several times until even her buoyant spirits were worn down.

One evening I paused at the door of her room. It was dark and quiet. Thinking her asleep, I was about to leave when I heard a muffled sob. Evelyn crying? Where was the shin ing courage with which she had met every other trial and which had made her an inspira tion to all who knew her?

One hand groped out from under the covers and reached for mine.

"Oh, I know it's wrong to be so discouraged! But if I could only understand why I don't get better."

I could not tell her that everything would be all right, because I didn't know. Even the doc tors did not agree on the diagnosis or on the prognosis.

Probably not everyone would make the same choice of comforting words. But because it was apparent that a storm was raging in the young woman's mind, and that she had need for reas surance in those things she already believed, it seemed appropriate to read from her Bible:

The Song of the Thunderstorm

Give unto the Lord glory and strength.Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name;Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters:The God of glory thundereth,Even the Lord upon many waters.The voice of the Lord is powerful;The voice of the Lord is full of majesty.The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars;Yea, the Lord breaketh in pieces the cedars of

Lebanon. . . .And strippeth the forests bare:And in his temple every thing saith, Glory.

The Lord sat as king at the Flood; Yea, the Lord sitteth as king for ever. The Lord will give strength unto his people; The Lord will bless his people with peace.

Psalm 29, R.V.

The words had the desired affect. Peace and confidence returned to the sufferer's face. There is something about the tempest in this poem that fits the mood of restless patients and gives them a sense of God's care.

Visiting the sick may be very rewarding to those who remember that "a word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver." I have written as a nurse, but the same experi ences might have been those of any Christian worker.

JUNE, 1961 33

BIBLE INSTRUCTOR

Our Friends the Baptists*LOUISE C: KLEUSER

S';EVENTH-DAY ADVENT ISTS have experienced little

difficulty in fellowshiping with Baptists. At the dawn of Ad- ventism, Seventh Day Baptists first pointed out to us the sev enth-day Sabbath. We have seen eye to eye with them on many

important theological facts and practices, and with them we are "evangelical Christians."

While the Baptist Church is in the category of "main-line" Protestants, many wonder at the great variety of churches in their faith about twenty-seven. When we consider seriously that some of these groups are definitely fundamen talist and others positively liberalist, some strictly Arminian and others radically Calvinis- tic, we must admit that the Baptist Church has much adaptability for assimilating, without uni fying. It is to their credit, however, that they have become tolerant on some of these points, perhaps because of the persecution their ances tors suffered for conscience' sake.

While Adventists share some common teach ings with the Baptists, Adventist teachings came from their own study of Bible truth, and their convictions were put into practice. But the Baptists are indeed our friends, and today there are occasional issues that draw us together in presenting" a united witness to the less informed. As an example, we would refer to the problem of the separation of church and state, now of lively interest. On the doctrine of the seventh- day Sabbath we are indebted to the Seventh Day Baptists for their noble indoctrination and

* This is the second article of a series designed to acquaint our workers with ways that will bring better understanding between Seventh-day Adventists and their fellow Christians. Ministers and their associate personal workers, however, should first become conscious of this need. Without minimiz ing the importance of our timely message itself, the achieve ment of breaking down reserve between us and other denom inational believers in Christ is far more effective than blatant attacks on our part. Kenneth Holland's booklet Great Churches of America, which is concise and well-applied in struction in tact and good will, helps point the way.

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their fine example. It was Rachel Preston who in 1844 directed the Adventists to the Sabbath. We then sensed their persuasive logic. Follow ing the Bible on the matter of Sabbathkeeping was as necessary as following it on the doctrine of adult baptism by immersion. All Baptists claim to be New Testament Christians. We might invite our Baptist friends to restudy this important principle in the light of the Sabbath truth in both the Old and New Testaments.

Baptists, like Adventists, are not creedal. The nearest statement of a formal creed is their so- called Grand Rapids Affirmation, adopted in 1946 by the Northern Baptist Convention.

Adventists heartily agree with Baptists that adult baptism by immersion is a symbol of the burial and resurrection of Christ and a witness to a new life in Christ. The Baptist position on sin, salvation, confession, and the need for a deep Christian experience is also acceptable to us.

Quite generally we are in harmony with Bap tist teachings on the Lord's Supper that it is a memorial service, a symbol with no super natural significance and no sacramental value. However, on the time and frequency of its celebration, and the importance of the prepara tory service, including the ordinance of foot washing, we must differ. We would be reluc tant to change from the direct command of Christ in John 13. Participation in the ordi nance of humility associated with the Supper has brought great spiritual strength to Advent- ism. We humbly wish that all our Baptist friends could share the beauty and significance of this ordinance.

There is another Baptist conviction that Adventists share: "Every church member, and every professing Christian, is an evangelist. By word, deed, and character, he is committed to proclaim his Christian faith and to seek to win others to its acceptance." * Adventists have admired the strong emphasis of the Southern

THE MINISTRY

Baptist evangelist on the imminent return of Christ to the world.

Liberal Elements in Baptist RanksWe note with gladness the Baptists' belief in

the Trinity, the deity and divinity of Christ, the virgin birth, and the Holy Spirit. These are generally accepted doctrines. Says William B. Lipphard, a Baptist leader and writer of ex perience, "The sublime mystery of the Trinity, of the eternal and infinite essence of God man ifested in three persons, the Baptist leaves to the theologians to interpret. He simply accepts it." -

The Baptist position on heaven and hell re veals the accepted liberalism of our Baptist friends: "Baptists cherish a vast range of ideas, from some nebulous, indefinable existence to some definite place, like a city of golden streets or a region of everlasting torment as envisioned by the extreme liberalists. Some Baptists find it difficult to reconcile the fact of an all-merciful God with endless punishment for sins commit ted within the short span of a lifetime on earth. Still others, with sublime confidence and trust, simply accept the assurance of Christ: 'Where I am, there ye may be also.' " s

Relative to church government our Baptist friends have no hierarchal or central control and no headquarters. "The local parish church is the sovereign, all-powerful ecclesiastical unit." 4 They also prefer to be called a denomi nation rather than a church. Adventists, how ever, were a unified fellowship from the begin ning. With us God is not leading individuals or a single church only, but a movement based on Bible instruction. In practice it means that Ad ventists prepare for their entire membership, at home and abroad, the same type of Sabbath school lessons. And this applies generally to other literature and organizational plans, the need for adaptations being recognized. How ever, Adventism would not think of itself as hierarchal. Another point: We have no col leges for training liberalists; our teachings are fundamental in the letter as well as in spirit. Although we do not change our doctrines to fit into the times, it is generally admitted by fellow Christians that we are a progressive peo ple. The history of our advance speaks for itself.

Origin of the Baptists

For an understanding of the rise of the Bap lists as a group, we have found that William Warren Sweet in his Religion in Colonial Amer ica (Charles Scribner's Sons, New York) is an excellent authority. In the latter part of the six teenth century and the early part of the seven-

JUNE, 1961

teenth, large bodies of the Anglicans and Pres byterians shook out English religious radicals. Although these so-called independents soon found themselves in Baptist affiliations, they later became Quakers, Levelers, and Seekers. However, the Baptists gathered to themselves some who had given up all their former reli gious affiliations. In addition to calling atten tion to those Baptists who claimed to date back to John the Baptist (similar claims having been made also by other groups), we should here catch the significance of Anabaptist, Mennonite, Moravian, and Huguenot influences.

The father of the English Baptists was John Smith, a student at Cambridge and influenced by Puritan teachings. He soon adopted Brown ish and Separatist views, however. Convinced that infant baptism was not scriptural, he bap tized himself by affusion, but was later bap tized by the Mennonites of Amsterdam. It was not long before most of the Separatists returned to England and propagated Baptist views, so that by 1644 about 20,000 members could be accounted for. Smith defended the attacks on his changeable type of religion by claiming it to be the right of every sincere Christian to follow "light" as it is revealed to him. Influ enced at that time by the Dutch Mennonites, these first Baptist congregations took a decided stand on liberty of conscience. Further Men nonite influences may be traced to the Bap tists' acceptance of the doctrine of a "general atonement" that Christ died for all, not just for the "elect" as was then emphasized by the Calvinists. By 1644 the number of "Particular Baptist" churches in England numbered seven.

Baptists in America

The same Baptist fervor was characterized in the American colonies. Influenced from abroad, settlements sprang up as a result of intolerance in the Narragansett Bay area of Massachusetts. Settlers there turned to Roger Williams, who was said to have harnessed every wind of doc trine whether religious or political. He denied the supernatural origin of civil government and developed a religious conscience, later well em bedded in the American Constitution. As to which one of the two Providence or Newport, Rhode Island could claim the honor of being the first Baptist Church in America we will not try to settle. It is more important to catch an other note that the Quakers had injected their Antinomian views. By 1671 we find that a Sev enth Day Baptist Church had been organized. Sweet reports: "Plymouth Colony seems to have been a veritable hotbed of incipient Baptists." 5 History reveals some conflicts when one John

35

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Clarke,.an important Baptist figure of that day, defended his stand as being "neither Anabap tist, Pedobaptist, nor a Catabapdst." 6 Baptist individualism, and tolerance for various types of believers on virgin American soil, had al ready developed roots. This again explains why there are so many types of Baptists in America today.

"The new charter of 1691 granted liberty of conscience to all Christians, except Papists." T Gradually, and around the ordination of Elisha Callender as the minister of the Boston Baptist Church, Harvard College trustees in the train ing of ministers accepted Baptists for professor ships based on the "belief that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the only per fect rule of faith and manners." s Here was little room for liberal theology. By the opening of the eighteenth century Philadelphia had become the strongest Baptist center in the colonies. In 1709 the Philadelphia Association had devel oped. Sweet points out: "Up to this time the American Baptists had been chiefly Arminian in their doctrinal position, but the growing im portance of the Philadelphia group of churches, largely influenced by the Calvinist emphasis, gradually displaced the Arminianism of the earlier New England churches." 9

Owing to the preaching of Whitefield in the American awakening, a message that moderated the extreme Calvinistic views of Jonathan Ed wards' theology, Baptists developed a unique grace for tolerating doctrinal views resulting from sincere conviction. While to date Baptists have generally maintained their Calvinism, the importance of theology per se has been mini mized.

Gathering our facts from an authority of Lutheran origin, we call attention to a signif icant observation: "It is therefore not surpris ing that widely divergent theological views are current among the various Baptist groups, among the individual local churches, and logi cally also among the members of the local church. Calvinism and Arminianism, Funda mentalism and Liberalism, separatism and un ionism, flourish side by side. No other religious body seems to be so hopelessly divided into parties and schisms as the Baptists. And yet few religious bodies have so tenaciously, con-

36

sistently, and loyally held to their basic princi ples as the Baptists. The Baptist emphasis on the sovereignty of the individual has made a strong appeal to the 'common man,' to the socially and economically 'disinherited,' and has been an important factor in making the Bap tists, originally a despised sect, one of the larg est religious bodies in America." 10

Alayer, who is generally a careful historian, makes another observation: "Among many of the Baptist churches, for instance, a false emo tionalism and 'enthusiasm' similar to that found among the Mennonites and the Quakers is ram pant. The majority of the Baptists believe in the immediacy of the Spirit's operation, and some come close to the theory of the 'inner light.'" u "This 'enthusiasm' has become evi dent particularly in the Pentecostal movement. While the emphasis on perfectionism is attrib utable to Methodist influence, the highly emo tional type of religion in the Pentecostal groups stems from Baptist elements." M

Mayer next quotes from the Watchman-Ex aminer, September 5, 1940, page 956, an es teemed and reputable journal: "When a Bap tist Church exchanges its flaming prophet and evangelist for a polished performer [question of pulpit-centered vs chancel-centered churches], the days of decay and decline are at hand. An American will freeze to death more quickly in the Arctic Circle than an Eskimo. Baptists will not survive long in the Arctic winters of ritual ism, sacramentalism, and sacerdotalism. The chancel type of church has developed in this spiritual atmosphere and is an architectural ex pression of it. Baptists may find that it is a 'spiritual igloo.' " 13

As we close our discussion of the Baptists as- a denomination we are reminded that they have produced some wonderful missionaries, such as William Carey, an English Baptist called the father of modern missions. And the first Amer ican missionaries, Judson and Rice, became Baptists on the way to India. Baptists have had a part in the translation of the Bible into na tive tongues. They have established hospitals, orphanages, and homes for the aged. They have produced great preachers and evangelists. Some of our best-loved hymns were authored by Bap tists. They are active in evangelizing and have

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THE MINISTRY

many missionaries in the far-flung fields of the world. And in the realm of literature we have two Baptists Milton and Bunyan.

The Seventh-day Adventist minister and gos pel worker should seek acquaintance with the Baptists in his community. Adventist literature may often open the way for happy relationships between Baptists and Adventists. As time allows and wisdom suggests, some participation in lo cal ministerial groups may ease tensions. In vitations to the attractive temperance programs conducted by our Missionary Volunteers are

gestures of good will and mutual helpfulness.

1 William B. Lipphard, A Guide to Religions of America (New York: Simon and Schuster, Copyright 1955 by Cowles Magazines, Inc.. Des Moines, Iowa), p. 6.

'- Ibid., p. 5.3 Ibid., pp. 5, 6.* Ibid., p. 3.5 William W. Sweet, Religions in Colonial America (New

York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1942). p. 131.« Ibid., p. 132.7 Ibid., p. 138.8 Ibid., p. 139. 'Ibid., p. 141.

10 F. E. Mayer, The Religious Bodies Louis: Concordia Publishing House), pp.

" Ibid., p. 262.12 Ibid., footnote.13 Ibid.

of America (St. 257, 258.

SHEPHERDESS-Her Vital Partnership

Candles in the Night*»jLOUISE C. KLEUSER

IN READING the New Testament we im mediately become aware that feminine

strength helped to shape the character of the early Christian church. Not ignoring the fact that twelve men had been called to lead out as its apostles, and that Christ Himself was called "the Son of man," the gospel message speedily emancipated womanhood. Though her domain previously had been confined to the home, world developments early pushed Christianity to use women in community service. We read of the deeds of Dorcas who became an example of practical Christianity. The church found her services indispensable, and we note that the apostle Peter performed a miracle to restore her to life. There is significance to the emphasis in the faith chapter of the Hebrews Epistle, which states: "Women received their dead raised to life." Women were then closely con nected with the heralding of the resurrection message, and applying this fact in the spiritual sense, womanhood has long exerted her influ ence in witnessing for the new life produced by the gospel.

We must go back to the Old Testament, how ever, to see from King Solomon's inspired

* To bring the solemnity of the hour before pur sisters especially, we have arranged to present in this section of our journal a series of reviews on Christian women who have made definite contributions to God's cause in various crises of the church. These will be slanted toward Adventism. Leaders of women's groups will want to keep these on file.

JUNE,1961

eulogy of the virtuous woman a picture of noble womanhood (Proverbs 31). It is not difficult to find her equal in any generation, especially where Christianity has had its influence. The wise man declares that while her husband was "known in the gates," his noble wife was occu pying a place of honor "among the elders." She had the characteristics of a businesswoman; she could lend a hand in commerce and industry as well as venture to buy a home for the family. Her creativeness seems not to be confined to motherhood; she indicated artistic skills in var ious household crafts, such as spinning and weaving, sewing and embroidering, cooking and managing the domestics. Diligence and thrift honored the family's status, for "her candle goeth not out by night." Her husband and chil dren call her blessed, while the home presents a picture of tranquillity instead of delinquency. No, Solomon's portrayal of a noble woman is not that of a china doll; rather "strength and honour are her clothing."

When studying the mystics of the medieval church we discover that some who were later canonized to sainthood came far short of Solo mon's pen sketches of godly womanhood. Often their zeal for the church's institutions was tainted with superstition and bigotry. More glory was given to frail humanity than to God. How contrary to the Bible account of Mary, the mother of Jesus, whose submission to God's

37

will was expressed in the Magnificat: "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit .hath re joiced in God my Saviour." Again referring to the wise man's idealism of feminine glory, he climaxes his eulogy by declaring: "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own work praise her" (Prov. 31:30, 31).

Leadership Among Church Women

We have observed great women leading out in the church program. We were privileged at times to become better acquainted with them, and found these talented, godly women to be modest and humble. Another observation re vealed that some younger women entering church activity made others conscious of their own concern that of competing with their as sociates of the opposite sex. It appeared that they worked hard to throw a halo around their special endeavor. Rivalry and competition were not begun in our generation, nor are these im pressions restricted to non-Adventist women.

It requires special grace for the church-em ployed woman to refrain from peevishness when her often laborious efforts receive little if any mention on the part of her brethren. While it seems regrettable that this should be so, our reference to this rare coincidence is in the hope that such a trend will not become entrenched in Adventism. A woman is more powerful in her ministry behind the scenes than on the rostrum, but that fact would not rule her out of public appearances. It is commonly accepted, however, that she has greater charm in the role of less conspicuous activity; and this pro vides protection from the arrows of her com petitors of either sex. Few women or men carry comfortably the garb of authority.

Woman's Service in These Times

Recently we rejoiced when a contemporary journalist objectively reviewed the life of El len G. White. Although our beloved pioneer leader has at times been misunderstood by the Protestant ministry and its writers, the author of a 428-page work, Great Women of the Chris tian Faith,* devoted much space to pay tribute to the excellencies of Ellen G. White's character and leadership in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The biographer, Edith Been, is a prom inent author and lecturer. Four years ago she wrote an inspiring book, All the Women of the Bible. For more than twenty-five years she was woman's editor and columnist of a Fort Worth newspaper, and has traveled widely. She has frequently appeared on radio and TV

38

broadcasts. Her own library of two thousand volumes on women's role in history is outstand ing. Without a rigid background of denomina tional affiliation she selected her subjects with the conviction that through their devotion to God, women can inspire lives today. Among the 123 women listed, Ellen G. White's service to the Adventist Church is dealt with in a kind, honest, factual, and inspirational way. Mrs. Deen allows for individuality, divine guidance, and sincerity, where some writers in Christian groups suppress truth and ridicule with harsh judgment. She is a big-thinking woman!

After reading the particular chapter on El len G. White we were impressed that Advent ist women must rise to the occasion of a stronger witnessing to the faith. The hour is late, for life's curtain will soon drop on the drama of the ages. Can it be that there is still "too much fiddling while Rome burns"? Or is there a playing on the beach while the tides of sin and destiny are rushing in upon us? Are we glamourizing our meager progress while earth's millions must be Christianized? Would we suggest that too many of our sisterhood are worldly instead of godly? Perhaps some who represent the leadership of Adventism have failed to catch, or have lost, the urgency of our times. Are we preparing now for the fast-ap proaching experience to "contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints"?

* Great Women of the Christian Faith, Edith Deen (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1959), pp. 428, $4.95.

Review of Basic Principles in Approaching Non-Adventists

(Continued from page 20}

His government. He could not keep them from sinning and maintain that principle of love, with which is associated the right to choose. We must not forget that.

"The young are often urged to do duty, to speak or pray in meeting; urged to die to pride. Every step they are urged. Such reli gion is worth nothing." Testimonies, vol. 1, p. 162. "Having brought conviction of sin, and presented before the mind the standard of righteousness, the Holy Spirit withdraws the affections from the things of this earth and fills the soul with a desire for holiness." The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 52, 53. That's the work of the Spirit. However, although we cannot choose for these loved ones (the Holy Spirit brings conviction) we can help people to make the right choice. From this point we move naturally into a study on the law of persua-

THE MINISTRY

sion. A fundamental law of God's govern ment is choice; and we can help them make the right choice. How did Jesus do it? He made truth attractive! You can get a bee into a jar several ways. You can get after him with a newspaper (you run some risks in doing it that way) or, if you are wiser, you can put a little honey in the jar and lure him in.

In The Desire of Ages, page 826, we find this sentence: "His blessings He presents in the most alluring terms. [I thought that word "allure" belonged to the devil for a long time. It belongs to the Lord too.] He is not content merely to announce these blessings. [That would be enough, if he merely announced the blessings of being a Christian.] He presents them in the most attractive way, to excite a desire to possess them." He makes them attractive so that people want to choose them. One of the big problems of Seventh-day Adventists is how to make their goodness attractive. We are to make truth attractive. The gospel is "tidings of great joy"; make the Sabbath a delight as it really is. The health message is to be presented attractively. One man said, "I will practice health reform if it kills me." Some have the impression that in order to tell the truth we must make it un attractive.

A great auditorium is filled with people. Suddenly fire breaks out backstage. Now how to warn those people in such a way as to save as well as warn? (I would rather save a hundred than warn a thousand. I want to save as well as warn. We have a warning message, but it must be a saving message.) So the manager makes truth at tractive. He says, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am sorry to interrupt this program. You know there is a law that we must have pe riodic fire drills. [That was the truth.] And this is one of those times. [And that was the truth.] We are going to stand quickly. The mothers with babies will go out first, then the elderly women and men, and the young women and young men last." He looked at his watch. "We will take four or five minutes to empty this audi torium." The building was quickly emptied. If some of us had been there, we would have stalked out on the platform and said, "I have a very solemn message, a warning message. Fire! Fire! Run for your lives! This building is on fire, and don't say I didn't warn you!"

(To be continued)JUNE,1961

New Book Indicates Nehru May Now Believe in God

India is buzzing with speculation that Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru now believes in God. Long known as one of the world's most articulate agnostics, Mr. Nehru has repeatedly attacked re ligion in general and Hinduism in particular, de claring in his famous book The Discovery of India that "India must . . . lessen her religiosity and turn to science."

But in The Mind of Mr. Nehru, a new book fresh on the Indian market, Mr. Nehru is quoted in an entirely different vein. The book, published by George Alien and Unwin, London, contains the transcript of tape-recorded conversations between the Prime Minister and R. K. Karanjia, editor of Blitz, a Bombay weekly.

In it Mr. Nehru refers to the need for spiritual solutions of some problems, and Mr. Karanjia asks him, "Isn't it unlike the Jawaharlal of yesterday to talk in terms of ethical solutions? What you say raises visions of Mr. Nehru in search of God in the evening of his life."

Mr. Nehru replies, "Yes, I have changed. The emphasis on ethical and spiritual solutions is not unconscious; it is deliberate. ... I believe the human mind is hungry for something deeper in terms of moral and spiritual development, without which all the material advance may not be worth while. . . . The old Hindu idea that there is a di vine essence in the world, and that every individual possesses something of it and can develop it, ap peals to me."

The Herald, a Roman Catholic journal pub lished at Calcutta, has commented: "Our readers will note this mental veering with great pleasure and they will not miss their opportunity to pray that the recorded enlightenment may grow fur ther."

In The Discovery of India, which he composed during his last imprisonment in India's drive for freedom, Mr. Nehru wrote that he was powerfully attracted by Marxism.

"Religion, as I saw it practiced," he wrote, "and accepted even by thinking minds, whether it was Hinduism or Islam or Christianity, did not attract me. It seemed to be closely associated with super stitious practices and dogmatic beliefs, and behind it lay a method of approach to life's problems which was certainly not that of science. There was an element of magic about it, an uncritical credu- lousness, a reliance on the supernatural. . . . Too much dependence on supernatural factors may lead, and has often led, to a loss of self-reliance in man and to a blunting of his capacity and cre ative ability."

In view of these past expressions by Mr. Nehru, religious leaders in New Delhi find most provoca tive his new reference to a "divine essence^' in ev ery individual.

—Religious News Service, Feb. 28,1961.

39

BOOKS - For Your Library

Language, Logic, and God, Frederick Ferre, Harper and Brothers, New York, 184 pages, $3.50.

Being a member of the Ferre family '(at least three of whom are now represented in print), this author is a popular speaker. He is often called upon to speak of the relationship between Christian theology and modern philosophy. Afterward, he tells us, he is frequently asked, "What is a good book on this subject?" tip until now he has had to confess that he knew of none.

About classical philosophy from Socrates down to Whitehead and Dewey we have plenty of wit nesses, many of them distinguished theologians. And such works continue to appear regularly. But today, when those on the growing edge of this discipline speak of modern philosophy, they are referring to the tendency and method initiated by Ludwig Wittgenstein.

What is the Wittgenstein method? His followers may disagree, but I believe it is essentially true that Wittgenstein (and his method) "must be seen to be appreciated." But since he himself is long since dead, we must rely upon his students to teach us this new method of philosophizing. Two complicating factors arise at this point: (1) He didn't have very many students and (2) his method is difficult. So most of us are left with his books, one of which, Philosophical Investigations, is con sidered as some sort of "Bible" by many modern philosophers. But this book is difficult to under stand. At this point the need for a simpler work (as mentioned by Mr. Ferre's listeners) becomes ap parent. And Mr. Ferre has given us what we need.

One should not think this book is a substitute for Wittgenstein's own. But it is a valuable second ary source, and the first from the Christian view point.

Philosophers today are talking about language. Theologians will be joining them during the next decade. If you want to understand the bearing of this trend on Christianity, this is a key book to read.

Linguistic philosophy should not be confused as a whole with its most widely publicized part, logi cal positivism. (Also connected with Wittgenstein's name in his younger days.) Ferre shows that the school as a whole has cut logical positivism down to size. He doesn't reject the contribution the posi- tivists have made. From our Adventist point of view it is well that he hasn't. We may find our selves strangely allied with the positivists in dis cussions, say, about the language of Genesis.

Ferre distinguishes between some of the various views on the logic of theological language. He

40

does not seem to me to be suggesting that these views are exclusively the property of any one theologian or school of thought. He closes his book with a preliminary essay on the kind of argu ment necessary to justify Christian theological language. He hasn't said the last word, but some times the (nearly) first word has to be said too! We hope he says (and writes) more.

SYDNEY ALLEN

Backgrounds of Dispensationalism, Clarence B. Bass, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Com pany, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1960, 184 pages, $3.50.

The book provides a careful account of the his torical setting of dispensationalism and its impli cations, in contrast with the historical beliefs of the church. Dr. Bass, professor of systematic theol ogy at Bethel Theological Seminary, St. Paul, Min nesota, has made an intensive search for accuracy of detail. He enters into the major features of dis pensationalism, and especially into the theology of John Nelson Darby. Darby not only introduced unique concepts into theology but also a new prin ciple of interpretation. In his introduction the au thor states that when he began a doctoral program of research on J. N. Darby's doctrine of the church, he was a confirmed dispensationalist. As he began to understand what seemed to be the basic her- meneutical pattern of interpretation, he saw that it was broadly divergent from that of the historic faith. He claims that one should know Darby to understand dispensationalism. Because these sources are scarce, Dr. Bass has furnished illuminating ma terial with reference to this eschatological system. For pastoral and student research, this book is valuable. LOUISE C. KLEUSER

Space-Age Sunday, Hiley H. Ward, The Macmillan Company, 1960, 155 pages, $3.95.

The reading of this interesting book would bene fit every Seventh-day Adventist minister. Not that he would agree with everything in it, but a non- Adventist approach that destroys most of the argu ments usually given by Sundaykeepers for wor shiping on the first day of the week is not only novel but also stimulating.

After a logical presentation of present-day phi losophy and conduct, the author poses the prob lem of observing Sunday and concludes: " 'Sunday' and 'Space Age' do not go together."

Mr. Ward contends that Sunday blue laws do not belong in this modern era. He says a study of the problems of shopping centers on heavily traveled

THE MINISTRY

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highways reaches the conclusion that "Sunday shop ping is the result of an exploding population."

His interesting discussion of the philosophy of rest leads into the study of spiritual rest. Here he contends that spiritual rest is possible even in activity.

In the author's outlining of the history of Sun day, the history of the week is presented, and the practice of the Jews, and of Jesus, in observing the Sabbath is fairly presented. Seventh-day Ad- ventists will find his reasoning of interest as he reviews John's use of the "Lord's Day" and its place in New Testament theology.

The writer of Space-Age Sunday traces the source of Constantine's Sunday law and the result ing disastrous union of church and state, but he advocates that church and state must be separate. In this book is advanced the idea that a balanced plural society "has roots deeper than restrictive prejudicial legislation."

Another quotation that will bear further devel opment is this: "It was God in the Jewish times who hallowed the Sabbath, but now it is the corner policeman."

Chapter 5, "Alternatives to an American Inquisi tion," unfolds a logical appeal to respect the rights of minorities. The conclusion is that a fully com mitted life to Christ and dependence on "grace only" is the only alternative to an American In quisition in the space age.

JUNE, 1961

The author develops the thesis that what the church is reaching for in this space age is not a cessation from labor but certain devotional and worship goals. He suggests that the proper frame work in which to reach these goals would be the spreading of devotional activities over the three days of the coming enlarged American weekend.

Finally the question is posed, "Could it be possi ble that Sunday is an obstacle to faith?" This question can be answered decisively by a Seventh- day Adventist, but the author has advanced theo ries that may be difficult for some Sundaykeepers to answer. M. E. LOEWEN

Brothers in Christ, Fritz Blanke (translated), Her ald Press, Scottsdale, Pennsylvania, 1961, 78 pages, $1.25.

It is no simple matter to establish the origin of the Anabaptists and to separate the genuine from the various fanatical groups. Luther and other Re formers in their day indicated their disappoint ment that such fanatical elements, with their ex treme interpretations of the Bible, would bring disrepute on the work of God. Historians have at times connected these Anabaptist believers with the Bohemian Brethren, but the author of this thesis produces evidence that both the "false proph ets" Luther had to deal with in Germany, and the Bohemian Brethren as well, were not identified with the original group in Zollikon, Switzerland.

41

Because we today see strenuous efforts for "un ionizing" the various Reformation groups into a National and World Council of Churches, such profitable research clears up much negligible infor mation of earlier times. Connotations of their be liefs and practices were not always complimentary to Anabaptists' sincerity. But truth has a way of taking care of God's Word in history.

Fritz Blanke's translation by Joseph Norden- haug is a scholarly presentation, well organized and documented, easily read, and presented with no bias. It is more than a factual apologetic. These early Anabaptists had convictions that they saw more light on which to act. One discovers from the reading of this classic that human clumsiness in such times, and impatience with the more conserva tive elements, produced hardship to both sides. The "brotherhood" way of handling the situation eased off many a severe blow. Today we look back to see that their contention embraced but partial light.

Bible teachers in our colleges and seminaries, ministers and Bible instructors in the field, do not pass by this informative booklet. It is a sturdy, attractive paperback of rare worth.

LOUISE C. KLEUSER

A Call to Faith, Rachel Henderlite, John Knox Press, Richmond, Virginia, 1955, 224 pages, $3.00.

This book is a call to a deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ, and to make this faith a basis for

daily decision and conduct. It might serve as a simplified systematic theology, revealing without a doubt the author's own faith of a first-century quality and certainty. Theology is translated by Rachel Henderlite into language understandable to the less theologically-minded Christian, with the challenge to face up to the genuine. The author is much aware of modern life but believes in Bible standards and orthodoxy. Her burden is to have Christians understand the doctrines to which they have committed themselves. Having received her Ph.D. degree from Yale Divinity School, Rachel Henderlite's educational interests have been asso ciated with the young people of Christian colleges. She is professor of Applied Christianity and Chris tian Nurture, and the author of books on both the Old and New Testaments. Her philosophy is very sound.

The chapters on the Bible, the Trinity, In carnation, and the Atonement indicate clear think ing. Those on Christian ethics, worship, and serv ice are delightfully stimulating even to a well- weathered Christian. Stewardship and family living present more than the ordinary challenges of our modern authors. Miss Henderlite's book would be profitable reading for Bible instructors and minis ters' wives. She and her helpful women's staff who made this book possible deserve the commenda tion of her Christian sisterhood.

LOUISE C. KLEUSER

NEWS -- From Current Journalsh'V

[Unless otherwise credited the following news items are taken from Religious News Service.]

^[ Christians were urged by Protestant Episcopal Bishop Horace W. B. Donegan of New York to practice a "spirit of unity" among themselves to help advance the cause of the reunion of Christen dom. Differentiating between "union" and "unity," he observed that he agreed with the Archbishop of Canterbury's recent statement that formal re union of Christians "may never come on earth." "But," he emphasized, "the other and greater unity (of spirit), transcending all barriers and proof against all differences of doctrine and jurisdiction, is even now within the grasp of those who truly love the Lord Jesus Christ. The one and only in tolerable disgrace," the bishop declared, "is that the servants of Christ should fail to love and trust one another whatever their differences." <f Strict observance of the Sabbath [Sunday] is getting more difficult for Christians because this country "is in the process of losing its soul to a

42

cold, impersonal materialism," asserted the execu tive director of the Lord's Day Alliance of the United States. Dr. Melvin M. Forney of New York, reporting to the alliance's annual meeting in New York, stressed the laxity with which Americans mark the Sabbath. "It is suggested," he said, "that we give up the observance of the Lord's Day be cause there may be others who do not observe Sunday as a holy day. We would also be asked to stop reading the Bible in the public schools. It is easy to see how deadly this concept can be to the vitality of the Christian movement if it is accepted by those who are adherents to the faith."

*[ Protestant and Roman Catholic leaders in Syr acuse, New York, joined forces in a full-page ad vertisement in a Syracuse newspaper urging the public to refrain from Sunday shopping. Part of a campaign to halt Sunday shopping in food stores,

THE MINISTRY

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the ad contained statements by the Syracuse Area Council of Churches (Protestant) and Catholic Bishop Walter A. Foery of Syracuse. The advertise ment made it clear that the campaign was directed primarily against supermarkets rather than small grocery stores. Recently, six major grocery chains in the Syracuse area announced they would re main closed on Sundays. This was hailed by the Council of Churches, which hoped "other stores will emulate their example."

<[ Two Southern Baptist Convention hospitals are looking elsewhere for $8 million to meet capital needs during the next decade after deciding not to seek Federal government grants. The Board of Southern Baptist Hospitals voted in Jacksonville, Fla., against asking funds under the Hill-Burton Act which provides aid for hospital construction. Affected are the Baptist hospitals in Jacksonville, Florida, and in New Orleans, the only two operated directly by the Southern Baptist Convention. Other Baptist hospitals are supported by State Baptist groups. To accept Federal funds, board officials said, "would violate a principle Baptists cherish that of Church-State separation." The two hospitals provided $335,000 in charity care to pa tients last year, for which the Southern Baptist Convention contributed $25,000 from its Coopera tive Program budget. Hospital board committees surveying possible sources of capital funds also are studying the "extensive teaching and healing min istries" of Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and Seventh- day Adventist bodies.

<[ Protestants and Roman Catholics were urged by a Passionist priest in Greenfield, Massachusetts, to "bind up" past wounds and work together in "reverence and respect" toward better understand ing. The Reverend Fidelis Rice, C.P., of Our Mother of Sorrows Monastery, West Springfield, told a "University of Life" program sponsored by the Greenfield Council of Churches: "We can stop judging the secret motives of one another and label ing one another insincere. We can honestly try to love one another, not in word, or in empty gesture, but in deed and in truth," he said. "This must be our aim. This is our Christian duty. We must not retrace the past," he continued, "to see who was wrong, or who was at fault, but rather to press forward into the future, to bind up the wounds, to pour in healing balm, to seek to do our part to bring all men to the unity of truth and of love. We do not delude ourselves that this is an easy task. We know very well that we shall still con-

44

tinue to differ one from another in many areas. But at least we will understand one another better. We can seek to have a deeper respect for each other."

Ij Dr. Albert Schweitzer, internationally renowned Protestant medical missionary, is writing a mani festo for world peace, according to associates at his jungle hospital in Lambarene, Gabon Republic. They said Dr. Schweitzer, who won the Nobel Peace prize in 1952, is planning to make the mani festo the culmination of his contributions to world literature and philosophy. The medical missionary celebrated his eighty-sixth birthday on January 14.

^[ Pope John XXIII's private cinema in the Vati can Palace has been modernized with a new pro jector and an air-conditioning unit.

^ King Hussein has instructed the Jordan Govern ment to draft a law guaranteeing the immunity and protection of the holy places in that country, Premier Bahjat Talhouni announced during a visit there. The government leader was welcomed on his arrival by Major Ayyoub Mousallam, a Greek Orthodox. The major said that he had urged the government also to carry out needed improve ments at Manger Square which is frequented by thousands of pilgrims visiting Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity.

f Protestant Episcopal Bishop James A. Pike of California, in a pastoral letter to his flock dealing with heresy charges leveled against him, said that religious myths have "an important place in the communication of the Gospel." A religious myth is an avenue of faith, he said, referring to the "myth of the Garden of Eden" and that of the existence of a "three-level universe, with a flat earth, hell be low and heaven above." The Biblical story of the Garden of Eden, he said, has value in explaining the nature of man, and showed the use of a myth to explain a "complicated truth. Yet," he continued, "I do not know a single member of the Anglican communion bishop, presbyter, deacon, or layman who believes this story literally." Bishop Pike has been charged by a group of Episcopalian min isters in Georgia with "disbelief in the Virgin Birth of our Lord, the doctrine of the Holy Trinity as stated by the Church, and the necessity of salva tion through Jesus Christ alone." The prelate has declared that while he firmly believes in the doc trine of the virgin birth, insofar as it related to the

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THE MINISTRY

Lesson Titles

Q 1. How to Understand My Bible Q 2. The United Nations of Prophecy O 3. Answer to the World's Dilemma Q 4. How Sin First Began Q 5. When Jesus Comes for Me Q 6. How Can I Know Jesus Is Com

ing?n 7. Earth's Last Battle Q 8. Ten Centuries of Silence Q 9. God's Great Tomorrow [~| 10. Life's Greatest Question Q 11. What Prayer Means to Me Q 12. Science, Bible, and God Q 13. Testimony of History Q 14. Finding God Through Suffering Q 15. In Partnership With Jesus n 16. The Royal Law of Liberty Q 17. The Crossroads of Salvation Q 18. Walking as Jesus Walked Q 19. Undermining God's Government Q 20. Can the Majority Be Wrong?

NOTE: If filmstrips or tapes are ordered separately, indicate by number, remem bering that there are two lessons on each tape.

Tape recordings are nar rated by H. M. S. Richards, and music is provided by the King's Heralds, an evangelistic team that ha8 stirred the hearts of mil lions worldwide.

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ing under this heading, eight cents a word for.each insertion, including initials and address. Minimum charge, two dollars for each insertion. Cash required with order. Address The Ministry, Takoma Park, Wash ington 12, D.C., U.S.A.

THOUSANDS OF HARD-TO-FIND AND out-of-print religious and theological books now available. Send 25c for recent catalog. Libraries purchased. Kregel's Bookstore, Grand Rapids6, Michigan.

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dual nature of Jesus, he is "agnostic" when it comes to a literal belief in the historic details. In his pastoral, Bishop Pike again described the vir gin birth as a "myth" which, he observed, church men should be free to accept or reject.

^f Dr. Arthur Michael Ramsey, Archbishop of York, will be enthroned in Canterbury Cathedral on June 27 as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. He has been named to succeed Dr. Geoffrey Francis Fisher, who is retiring from the primatial office at the end of May. Already nominated by Queen Elizabeth, Dr. Ramsey will be formally elected as the new top-ranking leader of the Church of Eng land by the Chapter of Canterbury when it meets on June 5. A ceremony confirming the election will take place in St. Paul's Cathedral, London, on June 21.

^[ A jazz band playing Dixieland spirituals and hymns took the place of the sermon at Sunday evening vespers in the Episcopal Cathedral in St. Louis, Missouri, and drew an audience of 1,300 persons, who filled the downtown church and over flowed into the halls and onto the sidewalks. The jazz program was inserted in the formal worship of evening prayer at Christ Church Cathedral. The service was arranged by Canon Missioner Standrod Carmichael. Singleton Palmer and his Dixieland sextet played for 35 minutes while seated in front of the high altar. The band has been featured at a popular night spot here for many years. Canon Carmichael explained that the introduction of jazz into a worship service was "part of the search for new ways in which people can communicate with the church and its message." The band's program included "Joshua Fit de Battle ob Jerico," "Rock of Ages," "The Old Rugged Cross," "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen," "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder," and "Go Down, Moses." While the band was playing, many members of the congregation tapped their feet and swayed their heads to the rhythm of the music.

^ Roman Catholic Archbishop Peter T, McKeefry, of Wellington, New Zealand, has approved the use

46

of a badge for Catholic motorists. Designed by a Catholic youth group, the badge shows a red "Latin" cross on a white ground. It is fixed to the car windshield. The purpose of the badge is to en able Catholics to recognize one another on the road, to extend hospitality, and to learn local Mass times. It also is thought that the badges will save time in calling a priest in case of accidents.

1 Major Protestant bodies in Sydney, Australia, are sponsoring a Bible-reading campaign among church members and those outside the church in connection with celebrations this year marking the 350th anniversary of the King James Bible. More than 300,000 leaflets urging more Bible reading have been published for the campaign.

f More than 35,000 Roman Catholic young people of both sexes in Spain are preparing to enter reli gious orders or the priesthood. The majority are of rural origin, but an increasing proportion 6,140 at present are from the working-class fami lies in the cities.

^ A group of 85 deaf-mutes "heard" Billy Graham preach a sermon in Tampa, Florida, at a rally at tended by some 20,000 persons. As the evangelist spoke, his words were translated into sign lan guage by the flying fingers of a team member. About 640 persons came forward to make "deci sions for Christ" following Dr. Graham's sermon, including nine of the deaf-mutes. Those making decisions were interviewed by trained lay counsel ors and Tampa ministers. A follow-up program will be carried out later by churches to bring the con verts into membership. The evangelist, who was conducting a three-month State-wide crusade, told married couples in his audience, "If you are seek ing marital happiness, I warn you, don't leave God out of your home."

^[ Total religious giving in 1960 for all faiths reached an estimated $4.18 billion compared with $3.9 billion the previous year the American As sociation of Fund-Raising Counsel announced. The association, which organizes, directs, and ad vises drives to raise funds, said the religious figure amounted to about 51 per cent of the $8.2 billion grand total of philanthropic giving last year. It said the remainder was divided among education, 16 per cent; welfare, 15; health, 12; foundations, 4; and others, 2. The counsel also said that churches, synagogues, and temples in this country have property and endowment valued at $15 billion.

fl Steps were taken by the United Church of Cana da's Board of Evangelism and Social Service to establish the denomination's first factory chap laincy ministry. The board authorized sending six ministers to England to learn the techniques of industrial evangelism and made plans to create a permanent structure for such a ministry within the United Church.

The only way to realize that we are God's chil dren is to let Christ lead us to the Father.—Phil lips Brooks.

THE MINISTRY

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JUNE,1961 47

PULPIT -- Pointers for Preachers

THE BIBLE IN Something new is afoot inTHIRTY-TWO the way of a new Bible. First,PAPERBACKS The New English Bible

(New Testament) recentlymade available. This is the English counterpart of the Revised Standard Version, and promises to be as good. It is the work of a group of talented scholars, who aim to produce the Bible in modern speech, and in the light of recent archeological discoveries. The Old Testament will follow later.

Second, comes news of something really new in concept. Jewish, Protestant, and Roman Catholic scholars are likely to work together, although in various parts of the world, in producing a Bible which will be the product of scholarship rather than of theological groups. "A valid, accurate text in idiomatic English" is the aim, according to Dr. William Foxwell Albright, for thirty years professor of Semitic languages and director of the Oriental Seminary department at the Johns Hopkins Uni versity, Baltimore. This work is largely Dr. Al- bright's brain child, although some thirty distin guished scholars representing the three faiths men tioned are engaged in the task.

The aim is to produce this work in thirty-two paperback volumes in the well-known Anchor Books, the publishers having invested $500,000 in the translation, according to press releases by Lynn Pool, of Johns Hopkins University.

MENTAL RESERVATIONS

The person who harbors mental reservations is af flicted with a disease difficult

to diagnose. How fully does the bride subscribe to the marriage vow as she stands beside her groom at the altar, and vice versa? Or to what extent does an elected official's mind follow his lips as he pledges to uphold the Constitution? In the sign ing of international treaties, does the mind of him who signs embrace all that the pen writes? Re member the Hitler-Stalin peace pact? The difficulty here lies in the fact that there is no known instru ment for measuring sincerity. A convert takes the baptismal vow. How much of it does he really embrace?

Perhaps the most serious aspect of this problem involves the gospel minister and his personal com mitment. He receives his charge and challenge at ordination time. In the examination room words of commitment flow from his lips. Do they all come from his heart? What of his pledge to evangelize? What about the seventh commandment? How about tithing, personal visitation, and promotional re-

48

sponsibility? Did the heart dictate the assent of his lips or were there mental reservations?

Of all God's calls, the call to preach is strongest. It transcends all conditions and destroys all quali fying clauses. It is a safe contract with no fine print. Like Samson wielding his jaw-bone club, it acknowledges no if's and tolerates no mental reser vations.

Show me a man once strong but now floundering on the iceberg of frustration, and I will show you a man who had at his ordination, or subsequently developed, mental reservations. E. E. c.

OVERUSED Overused and unused howAND UNUSED true this is of the magnificent

collection of inspiration anddevotion provided by our hymnbook. Some hymns are used so often that the congregation can sing them without looking at the book at all. This is good if at the time they are singing their minds are on the rich thoughts they are expressing. But when a hymn is used so often that it no longer stirs the emotions, then it is time to give it a rest.

In one church the absence of hymnbooks from the racks in the pews was so noticeable that the re mark was made to the choir director, "Doesn't your congregation sing at all?"

"Oh, yes," he said, "everybody sings the same hymns over and over." How tragic! That church had a fine heating plant to warm the bodies of those who attended, but no hymnbooks to warm their souls!

When the apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Colosse he urged them to admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in their hearts to the Lord (Col. 3:16). The hymns become a medium not only of inspira tion and worship but also of the methods of teach ing the gospel. And in more than one place in his letters he appears to be quoting from the hymns that the early Christians sang.

"Sing unto the Lord a new song," exclaims the psalmist. But instead of selecting one from the hundreds of excellent but unused numbers, too often we take the line of least resistance and sing the same ones again and again. One of the best- known gospel songs opens with this line: "Sing them over again to me," but When a hymn, even a good one, is used continuously, it loses its appeal and the congregation sings mere words and not real thoughts.

Let us admonish one another as we praise our God in hymns and spiritual songs even new ones!

R. A. A.

THE MINISTRY